Blossom's new bloom
by redrose3443
Summary: The shinobi nations are about to lose the war, so Tsunade sends Sakura back in time to before the Nine-tails attack in hopes of stopping Madara earlier then before. There she meets Minato and begins her journey of adventure and romance as not only a time-traveler but a jinchuuriki of the nine-tails.
1. Chapter 1

Blossom's new bloom

**Disclaimer; I don't own naruto**

_Prologue _

Tsunade's POV;

"sakura! sakura where are you?!" I shouted.

"Right here shishou what is it?" replied my 20 year old ex-apprentice sakura.

"Sakura i'm afraid were not gonna win this war Madara is just too powerful right now." i said sadly.

"But shishou if we give up now then all the sacrifices we've made will have been for nothing!" she shouted with glassy eye. Though i knew she would not cry she has not cried since we lost Naruto a few months back when he battled sasuke. And many other shinobi of Konoha 12 lost their lives, sakura, shino, and shikamaru are the only ones left now.

"This war has been going on for a year now and we just seem to keep losing our comrades left and right thanks to the white Zetsu clones and with Madara having the jubii he is just unbeatable." i said.

"So what are we just suppose to give up and let everyone's sacrifices be in vain because things don't look good?" she nearly shouted at me but refrained from it.

"No. As i said before he is too powerful _right now._ However this is why i was looking for you fallow me." and with that we both went into my office where shizune and tonton were. They both looked sad and exhausted, just like all our shinobi." Now I called you here cause your the only one I can trust on this mission. It is a double-s class ranked mission."

"Double s-class?! Is there even such a rank?" sakura asked with wide eyes.

"Yes now listen when I became hokage and went through the droors of this desk i found this scroll." I took out an old-looking scroll." This scroll contains a special jutsu that if Madara ever new existed he would have destroyed all of konoha before we even had the chance to defend ourselves. The jutsu is a time-travel jutsu."

Sakura just stared shocked into silence, so I continued "With this you can go back to before the war, before the massacre, and before the kyuubi attack. You can change the future for the better and save everyone."

"B-but shishou why me? I mean i glad you trust me enough however shika would be-"" sakura i'm sending you because you are smart, you have surpassed me in medical and physical strength, and you are the one who need to change things. You have made ANBU captain and worked with the strategist of our allied forces and you will not doubt my choice. Now i have already packed you a bag of what you will need also a scroll for sensei, when you get there tell him and whoever he trust everything and why your there."

Shizune walked over to sakura and handed her a backpack that contained clothes, weapons, and a small fortune to get her settled in nicely all in a few scrolls." good luck sakura-chan and please change the future for the better." said shizune through her tears.

"Hai shizune-nee i will make sure this future never comes to pass again!" said sakura with a fire burning in her eyes that made me so proud.

"Now my successor get ready." and with that i activated the scroll and a weird sign appeared under sakura." good luck my surrogate daughter."

"Arigato kaa-san." sakura said with a small genuine smile, one that I haven't seen in a year. Then finally she disappeared.

Sakura's POV

(poke)...(poke)...(poke poke)...(twitch)...(poke!)

"Will you please STOP poking me it hurts!" I said painfully with my eyes still close as i roll off my back.

"sorry lady just didn't know if you were alive." came a boyish voice.

"So you poke her repeatedly to see if shes dead?" came an arrogant voice walking closer.

"Shut up teme! it worked didn't it?!" yelled the boyish voice.

"Ow can you please not yell I kinda have a headache." I asked,while putting a glowing green hand to my forehead.

"sorry..."

"Obito what did you do now?" came a slightly annoyed female voice.

"Nothing Rin, really i was just talking to..?" the boy dubbed 'obito' trailed off. Wait obito? Rin? aren't those the names of kakashi-sensei's teammates? I then remembered that obito asked me for my name.

"Sakura. My name is sakura." i said as i opened my eyes

"Oh. well sakura-san i'm uchiha obito!" said an adorable boy in and orange/navy blue outfit with orange goggles and a grin that reminded me of naruto. My heart ached a little but I pushed it back because I have a mission to carry out.

"I'm rin nice to meet you." said a girl in all black plus a medic's skirt and purple rectangles on her face.

"Hn. hatake kakashi." said kakashi-sensei. I could barely keep from squealing he looked so cute! with his short frame in his dark outfit, mask, and big black eyes. They all looked about 13 or so.

"Well it's nice to meet you all, but could you please take me to your hokage once your jounin sensei comes out from those trees behind me?" i asked with a smile at their shocked faces.

Minato's POV;

My team and I were doing the bell test again so i could see how much they have progressed in the year I have trained them. They have gotten better at honing the skills they posses, but need to develope new skills and better teamwork. As we were assembling from our positions I noticed that obito was not here.

"where's obito-kun?" i questioned to his teammates to which they both shrugged.

"He probably went to mope about not being able to beat him again.*sigh* i'll go look for him." replied kakashi as he stalked off. But after a little bit Rin said she would see whats taking so long. And after waiting a little bit longer I decided to head in there direction when I felt another persons chakra signature. So I took to the trees and masked my chakra, when I got close enough to see I saw that it was a young woman. She had knee length pink, yes pink! Hair that was braided down her back held by a red ribbon. She had big bright green eyes, but they seemed to hold a deal of sadness to them. She was wearing a sleeveless cranberry colored shirt that had a heart-shaped cut out so you can see her color bones and the top part of her chest but not enough to make her look like a slut. She also had a nice chest I think they are double-Ds, they look perfect- ah! um anyway. She was also wearing a matching cranberry colored skirt that went 2 inches above the knees and black spandex shorts that went mid-thigh. And she was wearing gray colored low-heeled boots that stopped under her knees(like in the canon) and elbow guards with black fingerless gloves and a kanata with a red and black hilt on her back. All in all she was a sight to see and I'm glad I got to.

"Well it's nice to meet you all, but could you please take me to your hokage once your jounin sensei comes out from those trees behind me?" how did she know where I was?! I hid my chakra near perfectly and yet she still found me, this woman must be something else. However I need to make sure she is of no threat to konoha first. So I used my special technique and appeared slightly in front of my students for protection.

"Who are you? You wear a konoha headband but I have never seen you before?" I asked, well more like demanded.

Sakura's POV;

Great first the uchiha with his outfit and personality and now this yellowed hair blue-eyed man. Is everyone gonna remind me of naruto! It already hurts enough I don't need to be reminded by nearly everyone.

"I am a loyal leaf village ninja and I'm afraid that the only persons questions I can answer to is the Hokage and those the hokage deem worthy so could you please take me to him...?" I trailed off not knowing his guys name, but I could swear I am suppose to know his name for some odd reason.

"Minato. Namikaze Minato." he said relaxing a little.

Mi-na-to. Namikaze minato...HOLY CRAP! That is not only the name of the yondiame, but also Naruto's father! I've always wanted to meet his parents but knew that it would be impossible, well until today. Hmmmmmm he looks about 21 or so, that means I have time to prepare for all the events to come I will keep konoha and it's people safe no matter what.

"Well minato-san do you think you could take me to your hokage?" i asked after i got over my starstruck phase and stopped staring.

"Sure. Let's go team." and with that we all headed off to the hokage tower.

At HOkage Tower Third's POV;

*Nock**NOck*

came from the outside of my door I wonder who it could be. "come in" I said after organizing some papers, ever since war boke out six months ago the paper work has seemed endless.

"Hey old man!" came the only person who will call me old man and get away with it minato. But he seemed to bring his gennin team as well as an unknown woman with...is that pink hair. Well now I can say I've seen everything as my rule of hokage. I thought amused.

"Team seven. Tell me who is your guest." i asked, but minato and kakashi knew it was a demand.

"This is sakura and she says that she will only answer you questions." he said.

"well then sakura please start with who you are and what you are doing here." I said in a pretend relaxed pose, but really I am on high alert because war just broke out and I don't want to take any chances.

Sakura's POV;

"Hokage-sama." sakura nodded then handed me a scroll. My eyes widened to the size of dinner plates when I saw who signed it and so I called in Inochi, shikaku, choza, and ibiki, then told the three gennin to leave and beckoned for sakura to start." this information I am about to tell you is highly classified ranked double s-class." everyone had shocked faces besides the hokage so i continued." My name is Haruno Sakura and I am from 23 years in the future-"

"Impossible time-travel doesn't exist!" shouted inochi and the others nodded their agreement.

"I'm afraid it's true inochi. every hokage since the first has been passed on a time-travel scroll that is not to be used unless absolutely necessary." stated the third, while I decided to continue.

"Yes and the reason why I am here is because the near end of the fourth shinobi war" i ignored their gasp and continued." all nations had band together in order to defeat Uchiha Madara. Do not interupt me until I am finished!" i yelled at the end cause I just knew every time I would try and say something they would try and contradict me." He is alive because he discovered an immortality jutsu and has been slowly planning the down fall of all nations and he was winning the war because by that time it was to late and he was so powerful with the juubi (i have no idea how you spell it so plz correct me or bear with me people) even though he never obtained the nine tails."

"wait so the person with the nine tails is still alive in your time?" questioned the hokage.

"yes and no." i answered with a sad face, but decided to elaborate." the person with the nine tails was a shinobi of this village he was my teammate since we were gennin and also like a brother to me." I took a shaky breath and kept going" He died battling our third gennin team member who left when we were still kids. They both fought till the end and when it was over before they died my third team member sasuke apologized for everything and my brother naruto sealed the nine tails in me." I showed them the seal on my stomach and they all gasped with wide eyes.

"Please start from the beginning sakura-chan when all this plotting on madara's end started." said the hokage.

"Well I guess I should start with the kyuubi attack." and then everyone's eyes went wide and mouths dropped. So I told them all the story from the kyuubi attack the effect it had on the uchiha clan, the massacre, itachi's life and his brother sasukes, kakashi's life but I didn't tell minato that he was hokage I just said he died during it, becoming team seven, orochimaru and the chuunin exams which lead to the third's death, to which everyone was more shocked because apparently he has not left yet but when I asked for the date I knew it would be soon, tsunade-shishou becoming the 5th hokage, me training under her while naruto trained with Jaraiya, the akatsuki making their move, everyone's deaths, and finally the war. Needless to say everyone had to sit down and were extremely shocked about my tale, some even looked kinda sick.

"This information is exactly what we need to not only keep from making any of the mistakes we did, but also stopping the developement of the akatsuki." stated the hokage after he got over his shock. "Sakura-chan i know that you have been through a lot and that you have lost many but I hope you are willing to help us plan a brighter future for not just konoha, but for all of the nations.

"I am that's why I came back to keep the future from ever becoming like that again." I said strongly to which the hokage smiled.

"Good then I think we will keep this information between ourselves only, except for Jaraiya and tsunade once we track her down that way we can prepare for madara when he comes in a few years and stop him at his first step for the down fall of every nation." spoke the hokage.

"However hokage-sama if jaraiya is in Ame right now please send word for him to stay there. Because there will be an attack by rogue ninja that will be wearing konoha headbands and will kill a lot of Ame's people and that is another step that started the down fall because the first recruits will lose their best friend and want revenge on konoha. Also have him bring the kids here that way we can train them and have strong ties in Ame for whenever Madara goes to Ame we will know of his actions there." I stated.

"Yes that is a good idea. In fact we can stage everything in the same set up as you knew it but then when the time is right summon our allies of the nations and the akatsuki! Then not only will madara have no chance on his own but we maybe able to start an era of peace!" said the third getting excited about finally being able to accomplish what has been trying to be done since the villages were created.

"We will start working on contacting your students right away hokage-sama and battle strategies. We will need you to go more in depth of all our enemies and their strengths and weaknesses sakura-san, but I am sure that if we indeed make allies of the akatsuki in secret we should be able to survive with few losses." said shikaku with a calculating expression.

"excellent you all are sworn to secrecy tell now one of what you are up to we cannot risk sakura-chan's true identity getting out or else all will be for not." and with that everyone left to get started besides minato." Minato-kun I would like for you to house sakura-chan here" said the third, while mine and minato's eyes went wide." you have a spare room in your flat so i'm sure there is no inconvenience."

"Wait a minute hokage-sama, I have the resources to-"

"Nonsense you have been through enough already it's the least I can do for you saving my life" said minato with a huge grin on his face .

"Well no thanks I can-" but I was cut off again but minato. Honestly is he this stubborn?

" Come on forehead I don't mind sharing."

"Like I said before- wait what did you just call me?" i asked with narrowed eyes.

"I called you forehead you know cause it's so huge and all." minato replied nonchalantly.

" Listen here you prick I grew into my forehead, so you can shut the hell up right now!" I said getting mad. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed the third was looking _highly_ amused.

"Whatever you say pinky." said minato with a cheeky smile.

"I knew you would understand if I used small word Blondie." I countered.

"forehead"

"prick"

"bill-board brow"

"fur ball!"

"what did you just call me?"" asked minato with a twitching eyebrow. heh, so he doesn't like my pet name for him. I also noticed the third is trying to hold back his laughter.

"I called you a fur ball, you know cause of you wild and massive hair." i explained " Gosh are all blonds of this time this slow?" I asked to no one in particular.

"Are all pink haired girls this annoying?" minato asked with narrowed eyes.

"No just for you minato_-kun_." I said with a wink then left out of the office. When I shut the door I heard the hokage roar with laughter and smirked.

_'This will definitely be an interesting experience.'_


	2. Chapter 2

Meeting team seven

**disclaimer; don't own naruto**

Minato's POV;

_'That infuriating woman called me a fur ball. Then mocked me about being stupid. And caused the old man to laugh at me. I think I'm in love. Okay maybe not that, but no woman has ever joked with me like that they normally get offended or are too busy trying to flirt with me to even realize what I am saying, I mean I think it goes in one ear and out the other. But Sakura seems different and I like it.' _After I finished my talk with old man about sakura being apart of team minato I walked out the office to see the little vixen herself.

"Are you finished Blondie cause I was kinda hoping to go to a few stores then get settled in before I start my life changing adventure." she said in a flat tone.

"What happened to fur ball?"i raised an eyebrow at the nickname.

"I decided I will only call you that at home unless your really annoying, but Blondie shall be your public nickname." she said as she turned around to start walking but I was already behind her with my arms around her waist pulling her flushed against my front.

" So I already get a pet name for when were alone. It's like were already married, _Sakura_." I whispered in her ear, then smiled when I saw a faint blush on her cheeks as she stilled.

" Stupid perverted fur ball." she whispered under her breath, probably thinking I wouldn't hear it. "Let's go Blondie."

Sakura's POV;

"So where are we going first, dear?" asked minato. Honestly was the yondaime really this...playful?

" Well honey, first we are going to find something to eat because I am starving then were going shopping for extra things I will need."

" Well then its a good thing you have me because I know the perfect dinning place." said minato with a grin. Then he lead me to a familiar looking orange stand." Ichirakus. The best ramen in the world, right here in konoha!"  
I should've gueesed." Hey Teuchi!" greeted minato enthusiastically.

"Minato my boy good to see you again. Huh? And who is this lovely young lady hear?" asked Teuchi. And before minato could make some stupid and embarrassing introduction up I replied.

"Sakura its nice to meet you." I said with a small smile bowing a little. It was nice to see Teuchi-san again. Being with naruto had made me a regular customer as well and it was nice to talk to him from time to time, before the war started.

" Well sakura-san its nice to meet you as well I'm Teuchi and this is my grand-daughter Ayame." He said and I looked down to see an eight year old ayame. She looked so cute too!

" hello ayame-chan." i said with a smile.

"H-hello." she replied hiding behind Teuchi-san.

" Well minato. sakura. what can I get for two."

"I'll have the chicken ramen!" yelled minato.

" I'll have whatever Blondies having."

"Coming right up." teuchi-san said with a smile. " Oh and minato, she's a keeper." he whispered to minato, who beamed, while i was talking to ayame-chan and didn't hear.

"So Blondie whats your gennin team like?" I asked to make conversation and because kaka-sensei never really told us much about it.

" Well there's obito-kun he's like the goofball of the group, always late then comes up with some weird helpful deeds that he did as an excuse, and he is the more dense type too, he is always willing to call kakashi-kun out whenever possible they have a rivalry friendship going, but neither will admit to it. Next is kakashi-kun he is the more experienced in battle and has a lot of skill but lacks teamwork and always tries to be the boss, but is always willing to get into it with obito-kun. Then there is rin-chan, she tries to keep the peace between the group, and has some potential as a medic, but I can't help her develop that skill, which is why-"

" I was placed on your team. And to help the boys with their problems as well." i finished for him as our food came.

"Ah."

"Itadakimasu." we both said, then dove into our food.

" Don't worry Blondie, by the time I'm done with her she will be one of the best." I said not meaning to sound egoistic.

" Oh. Cocky are we?" he teased

" Not cocky. confident." i corrected Then we talked some, finished our ramen and went shopping.

Time skip in the morning Minato's POV;

We were able to finish shopping by around 6:30 pm. it was not as bad as I thought it would be, considering we started at 3:00 and all. And sakura said that since she is living here she will do the cooking and laundry, while I take care of the main room and vacuuming. Now it's 7:30 am and I gotta wake her up because she was too tired to set the alarm and we need to meet the team at 9.

*Nock**Nock*

"sakura? Are you up?" I asked as I opened the door to see her asleep still." Shesh. And she was yelling at me not to wake up late so we can be on time." I grumbled as I walked over to her bed and was about to shake her when she grabbed my arm and pulled me to where now I'm under her and she is straddling my waist and cuddling into my chest. When I looked down I silently cursed when I saw what she was wearing; a large bright orange shirt with ramen on it, that just went mid-thigh but was riding up to above her waist and orange and pink panties.

"Hmm~." said sakura as she rocked her hips forward and back. Great I just had to wear a t-shirt and boxers to bed didn't I? Because now I could feel her core through both our underwear right on my cock as she kept rocking."...ah...ha..." Dear kami did she just moan? If this doesn't stop soon I might not be able to stop myself.

_"S-sakura" _I moaned out as I tried to get her to stop before it was to late.

"Hmmm." she said as she picked her head up and stopped rocking. Thank kami, I inwardly sighed. Upon a closer look I could tell that she was not even half way awake so she must not be aware of what she is doing."_Minato-kun"_ she purred out my name and I decided that I love the way she says my name especially with the '-kun'.

"Sakura," I said getting back on track." I thick we should-mmph!" but I was cut off when she pressed her lips against mine and when I tried to open my mouth to tell her to stop she shoved her tongue right in and started to taste me. I also noticed that she started to rock her hips again, but this time it seemed even hotter than before and before I knew it I was rocking my hips with her and started to explore her wet cavern. She tasted like strawberries and chocolate and it was _heavenly_. We kept going and she started to moan into our kiss, while I groaned. Then finally we broke away for air and stopped moving and once we did I gained enough sense to flip her over so she could not distract me with another kiss. But when I noticed her flushed face, half lid eyes, and swollen lips I could not stop myself from giving her another deep kiss before pulling back after a minute. Then I got up and shook her awake fully.

"Huh? minato?" she said as she rubbed her eyes and sat up. " Is it morning already?"

"Y-yeah and it's going on eight so you better hurry and get ready." I said bewildered at the fact that she really doesn't know what she just did and how much it turned me on. Then before she could question my stutter I left to finish getting ready. It was going to be a long day.

Time skip training grounds 7 Sakura's POV;

I wonder if I did something wrong. Minato has not looked at me at all this morning. Well once we get to training the gennin I'll talk to him.

Just as she finished that thought kakashi appeared closely fallowed by rin.

"Ohayo sensei and sakura-san?" questioned rin.

"Yep! I'm gonna be your medical instructor rin." I said with a smile as I watched the girl's eyes light up.

"Really! I'm so happy I can further my learning cause I didn't know who to turn to for help!" she said excitedly.

"Well now you do also i'm gonna put in an application for work at the hospital and once I get in you and I will be able to really get into some medical work." I said grinning as she became even more excited if that were possible.

" What do you mean 'once you get in', do you really think you will be able to become a doctor so easily." snarled kakashi-sensei. Oh yah I gotta get used to calling him by just his name because now i'm his teacher. *smirk* oh this is gonna be good.

"HEY! sorry i'm late!" said obito as he came running onto the field, out of breath and panting." You see an old lady needed help with her groceries and being the kind ninja I am I could not just leave her struggling." He finished with a goofy grin.

"Che. yeah right you probably just woke up late your worse than this lady right here who thinks she can just become a doctor and be the best." said kakashi in a board tone. But before obito could start anything I spoke up.

" Well kakashi-_chan _i'm sure that you 'think' that I won't become a doctor but a **know** I will. Just like I know that if you don't keep your snide comments to yourself you won't be able to hit puberty." I finished with an all to sweet smile.

"Hahaha you hahaha got hahaha told! kakashi-chan!" laughed obito, while rin slapped obito upside the head and tried to sooth kakashi, to which obito got mad and started an argument, all while minato was chuckling. Huh? Interesting looks like team seven is cursed to have a love triangle. I thought as I remembered my gennin days.

" Aren't you going to stop them?" I asked as minato finished chuckling.

"Nah. To much trouble." he said finally talking and looking at me. I'm glad were sorta back to normal. "Alright team listen up were gonna separate, since forehead here will be teaching rin-chan."

And just like that my happiness turned bitter and I smiled a tight smile.

"Um...minato-sensei why did you just call her forehead and why is she here?" asked a confused.

"Well obito-kun it's because it's so huge and she will be your second sensei." minato said grinning cheekily, as I turned red from anger.

"Say that to my face you prick!" I shouted and I knew he would do it to thinking he so much faster than me. But even if he is if I time it just right I can get him.

"sure thing," he said appearing in front of me"forehead" and before he could move I tackled him to the ground trying to strangle him.

"You stupid fur ball!" I screamed in his face.

Normal POV;

" Have you guys ever seen sensei behave like this with women?" asked obito.

"No. He has not been this close to a woman since his ex-girlfriend." responded rin.

"Well I don't know about you two but I like sakura-chan!" said obito loudly as they watched their sensei laugh and sakura tried to strangle him.

Minato was having a hard time stopping her while he was laughing, but then when he looked up at her he remembered this morning and blushed a little. But he got it under control and flipped them and pined sakura to the ground." I win forehead." he said grinning.

"There was no competition!" she shouted back.

"Oh, so you just wanted to sit on my lap and cuddle, well all you had to do is ask." he said slyly and smirked as her face heated up.

"No! you egoistic prick! Now let me up!" she demanded.

"Aw, but i'm so comfortable." whined minato.

"Does it look like two shi-"

"Ah ah ah~ such language should not be spoken by a lady," then he leaned down so his team could not hear or see his face." or I might just have to punish you." he whispered sexily in her ear as he licked the outer edge from top to bottom, then bit down on her lobe. He could _feel_ the heat from her face and heard he softly gasp. Then before she could do anything he disappeared a meter away and started to instruct the team. When she got up as he was leading the boys away, with him close behind he looked back smirked and winked as her mouth dropped open, with wide eyes.

* * *

**A/N Thanks for reading also plz check out my other story and for those that do don't worry I will be updating soon. I'm still new at this whole writing fanfics thing but I will do my best!  
**

**Review plz cause that also makes me more likely to update faster!**


	3. Chapter 3

Familiar places New people

**disclaimer; don't own naruto.**

_' .Hell.' _was all Sakura could think and she stared wide-eyed after Minato. Two seconds ago he was all over her and acting like a _lover_ and it freaked her out! He can't be like that with her! What if Kushina decided to pop up and see him and she saw?! Sakura was not about to ruin the chance of her little brother's birth, no matter how hot Minato is. She would just have to distance herself a little and keep things friendly only.

"Um...Sakura-sensei are we going to start soon?" questioned a hesitant Rin.

"oh! Yes! Sorry for spacing out. Anyway Rin before we can begin I need to know ow good your chakra control is." Sakura stated.

" Okay. Well I start out having good control, but half way through I lose it." she said a little embarrassed.

" Don't worry, that's why i'm here i will train you to become a medic, but i won't train you how to use it in combat. Okay so for starters lets work on some chakra control exercises." Sakura said with a smile. And so for two and a half hours team 7 trained in different ways and then met back in the main area of the training grounds.

" Well team i'm sure you all worked hard so how about we break for lunch, then come back and finish the other half of our training?" Questioned a happy Minato.

"Yeah!"

"Okay!"

"Whatever."

"Well are we all going out to lunch or is this an individual thing?" asked Sakura.

" We all always eat together as a team unless something comes up. So how about we go to that barbeque place? " said Obito grinning.

"Okay. Well, i'll meet you guys there I'm gonna go drop off an application for a job at the hospital." replied Sakura as she took off.

With Sakura;

"Okay thank you for filling out the form we will get back to you within 48 hours to let you know if and when you have the interview thank you." said the receptionist.

" Kay thanks." said sakura as she turned to leave the hospital she saw a huge blob of red and heard yelling.

"HEY! I DON'T NEED TO STAY ANY LONGER I'VE ALREADY HAVE BEEN HERE FOR A WEEK AM I'M SICK OF THE SMELL OF MEDICINE AND THE TERRIBLE FOOD YOU GUYS SERVE HERE!" Shouted the red head.

"Please miss Uzumaki you still need more time to recover because your leg is still broken and one of your organs was punctured." said a nurse who looked extremely annoyed right now.

" NO WAY I-" "Excuse me." Sakura interupted the loud scene." But if you want I can heal you so you don't have to stay any longer." she offered, because she realized just who this woman was. Oh yes, Naruto told her all about her long red hair and how he got her personality.

" Eh?... Really!?" the red-head asked looking like a kid in a candy store.

"Really. Now I'm just gonna need you to sit down of that chair and allow me to asses the damage so I know what exactly I am healing." and the red-head was more than happy to comply, while the nurse just watched quietly with weary eyes at the strange new girl. "You have a fair amount of large injuries, but don't worry I can take care of that." and with that her hands turned a soft green and she healed her organs first, then the broken leg because it was not life threatening. "There. All done." and it only took 15 minutes.

"Wow! Thanks a lot! You saved me another week of hell on earth!" said the happy red-head as she stood up without trouble and tested out her fixed leg.

"Yes, now that that is over miss Uzumaki come with me so we can sign you out." said the nurse who looked relieved.

"Fine, but wait right here i'll be right back." said the red-head looking at sakura, who nodded. After 10 minutes the red-head returned." Sorry about that I just wanted to get the chance to properly introduce myself and thank my unknown savior. Hi my names Uzumaki Kushina and thanks for the help." she finished sticking her hand out for sakura to shake.

"Nice to meet you Kushina-san. My name is Sakura." she said shaking the red-head's hand.

"Nice to meet you too. And please call me kushina." she said giving a fox-like grin.

" okay, but only if you call me sakura."

"Deal. So sakura what were you doing there anyway? You don't look sick."

"No, actually I was applying for a job, so I can keep working as a medic when I'm not training."

" Oh really. Come to think of it I have never seen you around before."

"Yeah, I was on a long term information gathering mission from the Hokage and Just got back yesterday." She lied smoothly using the cover story the Hokage told her to.

"Well I'm sure it's nice to be back. Anyway where ya heading?"

"Well I was gonna go meet back up with my team at this barbeque restaurant. I was made co-sensei."

"Really? What team?"

"Team 7." she said watching for a reaction about the team her lover was in charge of.

"Team 7?! No way! That means your on the same team and Minato."

_'Time for some acting to see what there relationship is so that I won't ruin it.'_ Sakura thought to herself. " oh really you know Minato? Are you his girlfriend?" She asked 'innocently'.

"Girlfriend? Hah! Maybe once upon a time, but not anymore." she said without delight or bitterness.

"What do you mean?" she asked trying not to panic about the fact that her future little brother's parents are not together.

"Well...I mean we dated for a while and all but..." she trailed off trying to find the words.

"But?"

"We both realized there was no spark. We didn't click together as lovers." she explained.

" So do you two still talk to each other?" She asked not knowing what to do about this problem. I mean how was she suppose to make people fall in love?! Seriously. Maybe they sold love potions somewhere in the village? Nah that would not be a good idea.

" Don't worry, we got past the awkward stage of the break up and are now good friends." She said almost as if to reassure me. But why would she need to do that? Oh well not my problem...But wait...it is! What about Naruto!

**'Calm down kit and take a breath.' **said the kyuubi, who has been silent till now. **'Don't worry about Naruto everything will be fine concerning him.'**

_' ! How can everything be fine when his parents won't get together!' _she mentally shouted, while kushina was going one about ramen and missions.

**' Look I can't tell you right now because Naruto is not even suppose to be born for another two years. However when the time comes you will understand what I mean, but for now you need to worry about stopping the deaths of team 7, keeping the Uchihas in line, and getting ready to face off against the bastard who caused all the suffering in the future, alright?'**

_'*sigh* Your right Kurama. I'm sorry I just don't want to lose Naruto again.'_

**' I know kit, neither do I. Now get back to the real world and get focused.'**

_'Right and thanks.'_

"- and that's how I whooped 'em." finished Kushina about her tale of when she beat up some Iwa nin.

" You sure showed them."

" Yep! That's exactly what my boyfriend,Roy said. Speaking of him I gotta go meet him so I will see you later Sakura."

"Kay. Bye Kushina!" and with that both women went to their original destinations.

Barbeque place;

"Sorry I took so long." Apologized Sakura, as she looked around for a seat and found one next to Rin or Minato.(since they were sitting at a circular booth.) She was about to sit by Rin to keep her distance, when Rin spoke up.

"Sakura-sensei can you please sit by Minato-sensei."

"Eh?" replied sakura.

"Yeah, Sakura-chan! That way us genin can see you clearly and can talk to you better." Argued Obito.

" Don't bother, Forehead will _barley_ be able to fit next to me with her size." Goaded Minato.

" Did you just call me _fat._" Sakura seethed out the word like it was a curse.

" Well a skinny person would be able to fit here." He said popping a piece of meat in his mouth.

" Bastard I can fit there just fine!" said Sakura getting riled up.

"Then why don't you prove yourself and sit next to me?" said Minato sealing the deal.(Idk if thats a joke because he's a seal master, but w/e.)

"I will!" and with that she plopped down next to Minato, took a pair of chop sticks, and looked to see whats on the grill. But after a minute she realized what happened, her eyes widened and she looked over at Minato and found him looking rather smug and the genin trying not to laugh.(or smirk in kakashi's case.) "You tricked me!" she said pointing an accusing finger at Minato.

"Why I haven't the a clue on what your talking about." he looked at her 'innocently.'

"Oh no! Don't you dare try and act all-" but she was cut off when Minato took the meat he had in his chop sticks and fed it to her.

"Now Forehead just because your cranky that your hungry does not mean you should take it out on others." scolded Minato mockingly." Now chew and swallow and I will feed you some more." He demanded lightly.

" I don't need you to feed me and I am not cranky." she huffed and crossed her arms after she finished swallowing the meat.

" Sure~. now open up here comes the plane." Minato said and began moving his chop sticks closer to her.

"No! I will not allow you to feed me in public like this!" Sakura protested, as the genin were looking like this was something scandalous.

" Oh? So then I can feed you like this and better when we go home together?" He questioned with an amused look at his team's faces.

"Go home TOGETHER!" yelled Obito who was hushed by Sakura, whose face was heating up.

"Sensei you _live_ with this woman." asked Kakashi with wide eyes and a disbelief look.

" Yep! Out of all the options the Hokage gave her, she practically begged him to let her stay with me cause she found me irresistable." said Minato cheekily.

" All the options. Begged. Irresistable!.-" But was cut off by Minato again when he pulled her close so they were chest to chest and he put his hand over her mouth.

"Now now Sa-ku-ra no need to be so shy it's okay if they know about our relationship. I mean they are our team." With the same mocking tone as before. While Sakura tried desperately to get out of his hold but couldn't cause he was to strong and she didn't want to use her chakra.

"Way to go sensei I thought you would never have another girlfriend after Kushina!" loudly proclaimed Obito as Rin nodded in agreement, while Minato gave obito a look that said _'why did you say that?'_

"Kushina? Oh Kushina." Sakura said with a look of realization after she got out of Minato's hold.

"Wait you know Kushina?" asked Minato.

"Yeah I met her at the hospital, healed her, and we talked for a little while. I think we can become good friends, like how she told me you two are." Sakura explained.

" Good she explained it to you." Minato said as if a huge burden was lifted off his chest.

" What do you mean?" questioned sakura.

" I mean I didn't need you two starting a war in the village and causing kami-sama knows how much damage because your jealous."

"jealous? Why would I be? I'm not the jealous type." denied Sakura.

" Please Forehead, I can already tell that you are and you'd be jealous because someone else was after your precious Minato-kun." He said with a grin.

" I don't get jealous! And your not my precious anything!" yelled Sakura as her face heated up again. But before anyone could say anything an ANBU appeared in a small cloud of smoke.

"Minato-san. Sakura-san. The Hokage would like to see you both immediately." then he poofed away.

" Alright team you guys go back to the field and start practicing when your done here and we will see you later." he ordered as he placed down the money for the food. " Let's go Sakura."

"Un."(yes.) And the both disappeared in a swirl of leaves and cherry blossoms.

TBC...

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**THANKS FOR READING PLZ REVIEW AND i WILL UPDATE FASTER!**


	4. Chapter 4

Getting started

**disclaimer; don't own naruto**

Hokage tower;

" You wanted to see us Hokage-sama." Minato stated more than asked as he and Sakura bowed to show respect but, once they looked up they saw Inoichi, Shikaku, Choza, and Ibiki sitting at a different table with the Hokage and a lot of papers all around.

"Ah, Minato-kun. Sakura-chan please come sit." said the hokage as he waved them over. They both sat so that Minato was right next to the hokage and Sakura next to him." Good now that you both are here we can get down to business. I have contacted Jiraiya he will be staying there for the rest of the week then bring back the Ame kids by Friday( today is Thursday. Meaning by next Friday he shall arrive.) so that he can protect them from the raid on Sunday." He spoke evenly." However I am having trouble finding Tsunade, she has always been able to avoid whatever it is she didn't want to do. Which in this case means come back to Konoha." he said sighing.

"Hokage-sama if I may, when I was her apprentice for the first year I asked her how she was able to stay away so long and where she was at." the Hokage nodded for Sakura to continue speaking." She told me that she would mainly stay at non-shinobi villages because they still had drinking and gambling as well as freedom that she would not be caught."

"Hmmm. That does seem like a good idea. We have only checked the main villages and a few small ones but, they were all shinobi ones." said the Hokage thoughtful.

"If Tsunade-baa was trying to stay away from the bad memories as a shinobi than what better way then by staying away from shinobi villages?" questioned Minato aloud, though more to himself.

"Of course. She always was more on the smart side and she's not one of the best kunoichi for nothing. Wolf-san." called the Hokage.

"Hai Hokage-sama." said a man in an ANBU uniform and wolf mask.

"Take this scroll and ANBU teams 5, 6, and 7 to go to all non-shinobi villages in fire, wind, water, and grass country and find Tsunade. Take this scroll and give it to her, it will explain everything." the Hokage said as he handed the ANBU the scroll and he disappeared." Now that my students are taken care of, Sakura we called you here to get more information on the future for tactics and enemies." Everyone turned to look at her.

"Hai Hokage-sama. With the war just starting there is not much I can do about it besides go on missions and be on the front lines. However we can start training more medical ninja and the staff at the hospital because I saw that it would have taken a ninja over two weeks to heal from a few broken bone and small internal bleeding and you all know as a ninja time is to valuable." everyone nodded here." Also we can prepare the village so that when the Kyuubi attacks all the village will be evacuated and it will save many lives."

"Yes those are excellent points to work on. Without Tsunade here our medical staff has gone down in efficiency. In fact I think it would be best to make you head medic Sakura-chan and start training them because if you can survive and even surpass Tsunade then you can get our medical ward up to new heights." offered the Hokage.

"I agree and would be more than happy to. Also Hokage-sama you should get all the higher up ninja to train the ones of a level lower than them." Sakura suggested.

"What do you mean exactly?" asked Inoichi.

"I mean get the ANBU to train jounin, jounin to train chunin, and chunin to train genin. They can still be in their regular genin and chunin teams but when regular training is done they can work with higher-ups that best compliment each other. For example Rin is has an earth infinity and is good in medical ninjutsu but, because Minato is not a medic and earth is not his infinity he can not help her reach her full potential like a teacher that has the same infinity." She clarified.

" That does make a lot of sense Hokage-sama." Shikaku spoke up this time." The genin system is good but, not every genin is compatible with their teacher so they tend to not get enough attention and not grow as strong as their teammate that is. Plus we could work out a schedule that will allow ninja to work with those with similar strengths so that they can all move up levels faster than by the normal way." he finished.

"That idea does show a lot of potential. And if it works out then this could be a new training system, where you train in regular teams to work on weaknesses then you go and train with a team of similar strengths to get even stronger." the hokage said with a new light.

" This is a wonderful way to improve faster and for people to learn and come up with new tactics by working with those of different strengths and weaknesses, so that no matter what enemy they can be prepared." Said Minato.

" Sakura-chan it looks like we are getting off to a great start." said the Hokage smiling at her. Minato also smiled at her and she could not help but smile back.

After another hour of talking Sakura and Minato left the tower to meet back with their team for the rest of their training. Though on the way there they started talking about what they discussed in the tower while, they were on an abandoned road.

"That was a great idea about compatible teams. Now Rin-chan can learn more earth jutsus and Obito-kun can learn more fire jutsus and maybe activate his sharingan." Minato spoke.

"Yeah. About Obito-kun I was thinking I could just put him in a strong realistic genjutsu and scare him enough to awaken it."

"You can do that?" Minato questioned the pinkette.

"Well it worked for my teammate so, why not try it out on Obito-kun?"

" Could work and if it does I'm sure he would be happy."

" Yeah. Plus I want him to start working with it that way when they go on _that_ mission things will turn out differently."

Minato knew she was talking about the mission where obito 'died' then got brainwashed by Madara.

"I agree. i don't want to lose my team especially cause they are so young." to which sakura nodded." Also Sakura I really appreciate what your doing for me, my team, and the whole village your saving a lot of lives even though I'm sure you would rather be in your own place with your own loved ones." he said choosing his words carefully because they are out in the open and also watching her reaction.

*sigh*" Of couse I would love to be with them. But if I went back now I'm sure my heart would break. Many of my loved ones died and I'm sure not a lot if any are even left but," she looked up to the sky with sad yet determined eyes." here I can change that. Here I can give them a fresh start to change and to live happily with most if not all of their familly." she smiled sadly.

"But you will never be in the same position you were before." Minato said stopping and looking at her with steel eyes. He could tell she is trying not to show her pain but, he can still see it." You will never be on the same team as before and you will never have the same relationships with those people as before."

" Minato please stop..." she trailed off and looked away from him.

" You are giving up all you knew and loved for your friends, family, and village." He said stepping closer to her so that he was right in front of her.

" I know this! Why do you care anyway?! It's not like it affects you that much!" she screamed at him but, still refused to look at his face.

" Because how can I stand by while a woman who has and is giving everything she's got in order for peace for Konoha and all of the nations?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around her and held her in a tight embrace.

" Minato? wha-"

" I want to protect you Sakura-chan." Minato started evenly, whispering in her ear and causing her to blush." You are trying to protect everyone and sacrificing everything for your village like a true kunoichi, no a true **shinobi** and I can't allow you to suffer like this."

Sakura's blush grew even deeper as he hugged he tighter but, not enough to where she is hurting. She could not speak because she did not know what to say. Normally she would be offended that someone would think she needs protection but, coming from Minato the way he says it seems more like he wants to be there_ with_ and not _for_ her not to protect but to fight with and stand along side. And no one has ever said that, not even Naruto because sometimes he felt like he still needed to protect her like in her genin days. But with Minato she does not feel alone in this world and feels safe and...at peace with him. Is this what Juliet felt when she met Romeo? If so sakura can understand how they fell in love within two days because sakura does not want this feeling to end. _E__ver._

" I know it sounds weird but... I want to be there for you every step of the way and see what future you will make fore this world. I want to be your right hand in everything, your shoulder to cry on, the one you can can confide in anytime." He then tilted her head so he could see her face and what he saw took his breath away. His hands were in her long beautiful hair, her face had an adorable deep blush on it, and her big doe-like eyes were glassy with unshed tears." Sakura I want to be your everything." then he closed the gap between them and kissed her softly on the lips, as if to convey his feelings to her. He felt her freeze and was gonna break away and apologize but, then she molded her lips against his. They were both just absorbing each others feelings through the innocent kiss. Then Minato licked her bottom lip asking for permission and sakura quickly granted him access. One again Minato tasted strawberries and chocolate. Something he knew he could get used to tasting but, instead of lust in the kiss it was love and it was even more special than the first time will ever be.

After a few minutes they broke apart panting. Minato saw that Sakura still had that blush, though not as deep, and now her lips were swollen. Her grabbed her chin softly and pecked her on the lips a few more times.

"Come on Sakura-chan we gotta get back to the team." he said as he walked a few feet then turned around and offered his hand.

" Hai...Minato-kun." she said softly as she took his offered hand. Minato turned so she would not see the small blush on his cheeks but, she already did and decided to tease him later as to not ruin the mood.

Training field;

"Minato-sensei! sakura-chan! Where have you two been?!" shouted Obito who looked like he's seen better days. Kakashi also came up behind him looking a bit ruffed up and Rin is soaked to the core.

" We had to speak with the Hokage about somethings coming up." Minato replied slowly.

" And what have you all been up to?" Sakura questioned with a raised eyebrow indicating to their state of wear.

Obito grinned sheepishly " We were training."

"Oh?" said Sakura.

"Me and the baka spared while, Rin practiced chakra control." explained Kakashi as Rin came over.

" Sakura-sensei why are your's and Minato-sensei's hands linked?" Rin asked innocently, though she was trying real hard to hide a bright smile. She was real happy that her original sensei found someone again and she knew medical ninjutsu bonus!

Sakura who forgot about that blushed a little."Oh! Um...I...er..." she trailed off not knowing how to explain it. But Minato being the 'kind' boyfriend he is decided to explain for her.

"Well the _real_ reason were late is because forehead was begging me to go out with her and after a while I decided to give in to shut her up." he said smiling smugly.

"I WHAT?! Don't you dare lie! You kissed me first after _your_ love confession!" she yelled back not noticing the genins shocked faces.

"Which you responded to." Minato retorted.

" Well you are the one who stuck your tongue in my mouth!"

"After you granted me access to of course." During this time their faces were getting closer to each other, Minato of course knew but he was not about to stop. So now they are centimeters apart.

"Um...are you two gonna kiss again? Cause I just wanna know when we should come back." asked Kakashi in a board tone. Though if you looked at him you could see that his face red from what they were saying and that he was uncomfortable by what they were doing. Rin was blushing madly and Obito had a perverted grin on his face.

"Eh?" Said Sakura snapping out of her glaring contest with Minato and finally noticing what Kakashi was talking about but, before she could deny anything Minato wrapped his arms around her again and pulled her flushed against him.

"Your right Kakashi-kun give us about ten minutes then come back and we can resume training." he said grinning cheekily.

"WHAT!?" shouted a disbelieving Sakura but, was ignored as the genin left into the small forest.

"You bast-" however Minato cut her off with another deep kiss that she started to respond to.

Oh yeah Minato was loving this. And things were just getting started.

TBC...

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**Plz leave reviews they inspire me to write more! Also like and fav!  
**

**MINATOxSAKURA RULE!**


	5. Chapter 5

Blossom's new bloom_  
_

**disclaimer; i don't own naruto**

The Next Day;

Sakura needed time to think. She had just aloud Minato to enter in her heart and make a spot for himself. She is allowing Minato to get to her and she doesn't know what to do about it. This is Naruto's _dad_. How can she do that to him? But he's so kind, caring, funn-Stop that!

Sakura didn't want to be near Minato for a while until she cleared her thoughts and was able to process how to proceed around him. She can't just start to love him because of Naruto, but Kurama did say to not worry about it, however why is still a big problem. She decided to take a walk at 6:30 am to clear her head. Sakura then unconsciously thought back to yesterday's training.

Flashback;

_Sakura was still making out with Minato eight minutes into their 'Make out session time', but pulled away after the need for air was to great. When she did the two gazed into each others eyes with their foreheads pressed together. _

_" Minato..." Sakura breathed out breathlessly._

_" Aww. What happened to 'Minato-kun'" he questioned smugly._

_" That is reserved for special occasions for now. Besides we can't just stand here and kiss we have a team to train." she answered as she pulled back. Minato pouted and she thought he looked to cute to resist and gave him one final deep kiss." There now let's go get our team." she said as she pulled him with her.  
_

_"Oh! hey guys! Done with your make out session already?" Asked Obito with a grin._

_"Yes. Now Obito-kun, Minato and I were talking and I think there is a way to help you awaken your sharingan." _

_"Really?!" asked an excited Obito._

_"Really. Sakura will put you in a strong realistic genjutsu in order for you to awaken it." answered Minato.  
_

_" Awesome! Let's do it!" shouted Obito._

_"Wait a second. Sakura-sensei what type of genjutsu are you going to put him in?" asked a curious Rin._

_" That's a secret." said Sakura. She had just the thing in mind too. She was gonna put him in the same situation that caused him to unlock his sharingan in the first place. Although she would alter it a bit because she was not there when it happened, however in doing this Obito will awaken his sharingan and be able to understand what to do when the real situation occurs in a few years time." Okay Obito-kun good luck and make us proud." and with that Sakura placed him under the genjutsu.**(It's gonna go exactley like in the canon, except Obito won't give up his eye.)**_

_"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" yelled out Obito as he fell to the floor covering his face with his hands._

_" Obito are you okay?!" asked a worried Rin with Kakashi right behind her, but both Minato and Sakura stayed in place because they knew what was going on._

_" I...Ha...Feel kinda...Ha...Sick." panted out Obito._

_" Obito-kun please show us your face." commanded Sakura softly._

_When obito looked up and opened his eyes Rin and Kakashi were shocked to see his sharingan activated while, Sakura and Minato were happy for him._

_" I...did it." Obito started out slowly." I got my sharingan. It worked!" he said fist pumping the air with the largest grin they have ever seen on his face. He then looked over to Sakura, jumped up and hugged her tightly. "Thank you so much Sakura-chan." He said with so much scinserity that Sakura could have cried, especially when she saw the tears in his eyes.  
_

_Minato was so happy for Obito because he knew that the Uchiha clan was giving Obito a hard time about not already activating his sharingan even though he was twelve. So he knew how much this meant to him. And he found himself once again thanking whatever god out there was listening for bringing Sakura here and allowing not only his village and team to meet her but also himself. For this is the first time he has ever met someone, other than himself, who will go the extra mile for not just the village but, it's people no matter how small the act may seem, he knows that she just made Obito's world. And he could do nothing but smile fondly at her.  
_

_" Well congratulations Obito you finally caught up with the ten year olds of your clan. Now all you have to do is figure out how to use your kekkei genkai and you might actually turn out to be half a descent shinobi." commented Kakashi._

_Obito was about to turn around and start another argument but, before he could Sakura turned him around, pulled him flushed against her so that she was hugging him from behind, and began to speak._

_" Aww. Kashi-kun if your jealous that Obi-kun here is getting all the hugs and attention all you had to do is say so." She teased , while hugging Obito tighter but, not to where it hurt him._

_Kakashi registering what she said and his new 'nickname' blushed and glared at the pinkette while yelling." I am Not!"_

_Obito was snikering, Rin was trying to hold in her laughter, Minato was grinning smugly, and Sakura was smirking as she made her way over to Kakashi, who was fuming._

_"It's okay Kashi-kun," she said hugging him from behind." We all love you too." Then to tease him even more she kissed him on the cheek, to which he blushed even harder from not used to have someone touch him as so._

_However Rin lost all signs of laughing, Obito looked shocked, and Minato frowned a little._

_" Sakura-sensei, you can't kiss kakashi-kun like that!" said Rin pouting and glaring at her medical teacher._

_" Yeah! I didn't even get a kiss." whined Obito._

_" Oh, your right Obi-kun that wouldn't be fair now would it?" spoke Sakura as she walked over to Obito a lifted up his head with her index finger and thumb" besides who could resist that boyish charm of yours?" she then kiss him on the cheek, which cause him to blush and grin sheepishly while rubbing the back of his head with his hand. _

_"I think that's enough kisses for one day." spoke Minato as he gently but quickly pulled Sakura off and a good distance away from the boys._

_" Fine. Now Obi-kun deactivate your sharingan and you should all go home for some well deserved rest."_

_" Hai Sakura-chan!"_

_" Whatever."_

_" Okay Sakura-sensei."_

_" Oh and Rin-chan just call me shisou that way you can just call Minato sensei like before."_

_" Okay shishou!"_

_And with that the genin left the training feild and headed off home. When they were far enough Sakura turned in Minato's arms so that she was facing him._

_"You wanna tell me what that was about?" She asked(more like demanded) while crossing her arms._

_"...No." Minato answered looking away but, not letting go of her._

_"Are you pouting Minato?" Sakura asked as she tried to keep the amused smile off her face, to no avail._

_" Of course not! Why would I pout over something as ridiculous as kisses on the cheek or nicknames." he answered rhetorically, while puffing out his cheek._

_Sakura wanted to laugh at him. He just looked **too** adorable pouting! But she decided to ease his nerves instead. She put her hand on his cheek and gently forced him to face her, looked him dead in the eyes with a soft and caring look, and closed her eyes and placed her lips onto his as if reassuring him._

_Minato was a bit shocked that she was kissing him, he thought for sure she would laugh at him not comfort. But after a moment he kissed her back. After another moment he licked her bottom lip and asked her for entrance, which she granted without a second thought, and stuck his tongue in and proceeded to do a slow and sensual dance with hers._

_"Mmm~...Minato." moaned Sakura as Minato's hands started to roam over her body. " Ah! Minato we can't do this in public!" whined Sakura as she came to her senses and looked around to see if anyone saw them._

_" Then let's go back home and do it." Minato suggested with a grin._

_" Minato~." pouted out Sakura huffing and crossing her arms._

_" Now whose pouting?" Teased Minato as he poked her cheek._

_" Shut up and let's go I gotta make dinner and you got chores to do mister." Sakura spoke as she grabbed Minato's hand and began pulling him._

_" Whatever you say koishi.(darling)" He said walking along with her and grinned happily when he saw her blush._

End of flashback;  


Sakura really does enjoy her time with Minato and Team seven but, right now she has to think about how she is going to stop Madara from messing with the Uchiha clan, mainly the Uchiha elders. But Sakura knew that with an Uchiha involved things never went as planned, though she could say the same for Naruto.

Ah Naruto you can always count on him to **fuck shit up.**

Sakura inwardly paused.

_'Kurama...is that you?'_

**' Heh in the flesh...well sort of.'**

_'Kami you scared me. And is that what you think Naruto does?'_

**' Come on kit you know as well as I do that when something is planned and you add Naruto into the mix you can kiss that plan** **goodbye.'**

_'...I can't argue with that. He was more reckless than a child, as powerful as a tailed beast, and wouldn't know subtle if it punched him in his face.'_ Sakura thought dryly_' But he was Naruto. Lovable, loud, life changing Naruto and I wouldn't change him for the world.'_ She finished with a fond smile.

**' Me too kit. Though I don't miss the smell of ramen and am happy to have someone who can hold an intelligent conversation, I wouldn't ever be able to find a more dense, rude, and entertaining gaki (brat) who somehow managed to get me to cooperate with him as a partner.'**

_'Aww. Would it help if I called you fuzzy like he did?"_

**' Hell no.' **Grumbled out Kurama as he began to sulk and Sakura inwardly laughed at him. However she was so distracted by her thoughts that she didn't notice the woman in front of her and they collided.

" Ah!" said the woman.

" Oh my! I'm so sorry I was to busy lost in my own thoughts to pay attention." apologized Sakura as she held out her hand to pick up the woman she knocked over, though she still didn't see her face.

" It's okay I was in my thoughts as well." Said the woman softly as she took Sakura's offered hand and stood. Sakura, who was looking at the ground till now, looked up and nearly jumped in shock because there before her stood Itachi's and Sasuke's mother Uchiha Mikoto.

"Okaa-san are you okay?" came a small child like voice.

Sakura looked down and saw a chibi version of Itachi with a worried expression on his face. She never gave much thought that Itachi would be such a cutie as a child, She really wanted to pick him up and hug him like there was no tomorrow while, rubbing her cheek against his and squealing 'kawaii.'

"Hai Ita-chan mommy is just fine." Said Mikoto picking up itachi and placing him on her hip. Itachi quickly wrapped his arms around her neck to keep from falling then, looked at the mysterious woman who bumped into his mommy. Mikoto followed his gaze and nearly gasped at forgetting the woman and not introducing herself properly.

" Forgive me for my rude behavior. My name is Uchiha Mikoto and this is my four year-old Itachi. Hagimemashite.( Nice to meet you.)" Mikoto said giving a polite smile.

" Then forgive me as well. My name is Haruno Sakura. Hajimemashite." She said returning the smile.

" Wait a minute...Could you be the 'Sakura-chan' that Obito-kun was talking about yesterday?"

" Hai. I just became his second sensei recently."

" Oh how wonderful! That means I can properly thank you!" She said excitedly.

" um...What for?"

" For helping him awaken his sharingan. I'm sure you don't know this but he received a lot of grief for not having it. And when he walked through the compound with the brightest smile I ever saw I asked him what happened and he showed me, then went off to show his parents."

" Oh really? But why do you need to thank me? Are you his aunt?"

" Yes I am. And I always held a spot for Obito-kun in my heart because I'm sure you know he is not like most Uchiha and because I always had him babysit Ita-chan and sometimes Shi-chan when he is over so I know how the kids in the compound treated him." She said frowning slightly at the end." So that's why I would like to invite you, Obito-kun, and Shi-chan over for dinner. As a thank you for you, celebration for Obito-kun because his parents will be leaving this afternoon on a mission and he will be staying with us, and because Shi-chan is there to play with Ita-chan, he is a lot like Obito-kun, who is his closest cousin actually." she finished smiling again.

" I...see" said Sakura as she processed it all. " Then I am thankful for the invite and I will take you up on that offer." She said smiling as well. She never knew what sasuke's mother was like but, she seemed to be the kind and caring type, which she was sure you didn't see often in the Uchiha compound.

" Great! I will go shopping, notify the guards that you will be coming, and make a special meal just for Obito-kun! Ita-chan say goodbye to Sakura-san." She said smiling down at him.

Itachi just looked at Sakura, blushed a bit, and hid his face in Mikoto's neck.

"Ita-chan." scolded Mikoto lightly.

" No it's okay Mikoto-san I don't mind at all and please call me Sakura." She said, though inside she was squealing at how cute Itachi is. She really wants to hug him tight and never let go!

" Okay but, only if you call me Mikoto as well Sakura. Now I must be getting back to shopping I will see you at seven. It was nice meeting you."

" Okay Mikoto, I'll see you at seven and it was nice meeting you to." She said as Mikoto turned away and started walking." And it was nice meeting you to Itachi." She said when Itachi poked his head out from Mikoto's shoulder then, smiled when he hid behind it again.

Sakura turned away and started walking around again smiling, until she remembered Minato and frowned. What was she going to do about him? After who knows how long she stood debating what to do, she finally gave up and decided to see where this was gonna go. Besides it might just be a fleeting attraction and nothing more for all she knows.

Sakura decided to get her mind off Minato by thinking about yesterday's meeting. She will first work in the hospital as a regular medic for a little while and see which areas are lacking then, once she is put in charge she will work on them along with the staff to bring up the hospital's efficiency. The hospital shall be notified by today of her arrival Monday as well as her position. And after a week of working there she will bring Rin with her in order to further her medical training.

And by next month the new training program will go into effect. Once they notify all chunin and above that groups will be formed for those who have similar elements and strengths. With that all of the genin and chunin will become stronger with the help of more powerful and experienced ninja.

It was around 7:30 am when Sakura arrived at the training grounds, because she didn't want to see Minato for a little while longer. She decided to meditate and calm her nerves for the next half hour till the team started showing up. She used to always use this method when she had a lot to think about and was really stressed. She would concentrate on her chakra and senses and block the rest of the world out. Though it is not the safest thing to do being a ninja and all it was the best way for her to calm down and keep a leveled head.

When she opened her eyes she jumped back a little when, she saw ocean blue eyes barely a inch away from her.

" Where were you this morning?" questioned Minato. Though he was good at keeping his tone and face neutral, his eyes always betrayed his true feelings and Sakura could tell he was upset with her.

" I went for a walk." she replied after regaining her composure.

" And you couldn't leave a note?"

" Well I made you breakfast, that should be a sign that I wasn't kidnapped or in danger."

" Still..." trailed off Minato not wanting to sound frightened like he was when she was not in the house this morning.

" Were you worried about me?" asked Sakura smiling slightly. _'He really does care.'_

" Well...I..." said Minato rubbing the back of his head like Naruto always did, when he was nervous.

"Thank you." Said Sakura as she kissed his cheek.

Minato grinned" No problem. But if you want to thank me," Minato then pulled Sakura so that she was in between his legs with both of hers swung over his right leg and himself leaning back against a tree." this is the best way." then he covered her lips with his.

" Gross. Am I gonna have to see this everyday now?" came an annoyed childish voice.

" I sure hope so."Grinned Minato as he looked at Sakura, who blushed and quickly got out of his lap.

*cough*" Hi Kashi-kun. Ri-chan. How are you two today?"

" Good shishou I can't wait to get more into my medical training. I even practiced more chakra control exercises when I got back home." replied Rin.

" That's great. Since you already know how to heal minor cuts it should be a bit easier to heal once your chakra control is good enough. Also Rin next week I begin work at the hospital, so I can only see you after two thirty pm on the week days. However I talked with the hokage and once I' ve been working there for two weeks I can bring you along with me in order to further your training." Said Sakura smiling at how excited Rin looks.

" They actually let you get the job?" asked a disbelieving Kakashi.

" Watch it kiddo or you may end up broken on the inside out." she threatened back.

" Che. Yeah right like you could be me."

" That superiority complex will be your down fall Kakashi. You need to learn to work with others and the fact that there will always be people out there as strong or stronger than you in life. Cause if you don't before it's to late, you'll end up broken and alone." said Sakura. She didn't notice they way they were looking at her because she was remembering the time Kakashi-sensei finally told Naruto and her about his genin team. She felt so sad for him, he had lost not only his teammates and sensei but, his family.

" I know that there are people stronger than me right now. But in a few years I'll be one of the best."

" Hmmm." replied Sakura deep in thoughts.

" SORRY I'M LATE!" That brought her back to reality.

" Sorry. An old lady needed help with her groceries and being the kind guy I am I helped her carry them." said Obito grinning.

" Yeah right. You probably just slept in."

" No! I was helping that old lady! Shut up teme!"

" Why don't you? Your the one yelling. Baka."

Sakura still could not get over how similar team seven was to 20 years before.

" Obi-kun next time ask the lady for a note, so you don't get in trouble okay?" she asked with an amused smile.

" Hai Sakura-chan!"

" okay team let's begin our training for today. And make it count cause this is the last day for the week and we wanna see improvement." Spoke Minato clapping his hands together.

A few hours later found three little genin exhausted and covered in sweat.

" I'm...So...Tiered." panted out Obito.

" You all worked hard today and for that I'm proud." said Minato smiling down at them.

" Ah, it's already five thirty." said Sakura looking at the sun.

"Five thirty! I gotta go! Have a nice weekend senseis!" shouted Obito as he took off.

" I also have to take my leave you guys. And Rin if you keep practicing your control over the weekend I believe we can move on to some actual healing Monday afternoon."

" Really? Then I will do my best shishou!"

" Good. Bye kakashi-kun, Ri-chan, and Minato. I'll see you later." And with that she disappeared in a swirl of red and pink cherry petals.

Sakura returned home and sprinted into her closet. She needed to find something that was formal but still casual to wear at the Uchiha main house. This will be her first time ever going inside and truth be told she was nervous about meeting the head of the family. She heard from the elder people that he was as stoic and strict as they come and she knew that first impressions meant everything.

She went into the bathroom to quickly shower and get rid of the little sweat and grim she got from being outside all day. By the time she got out it was ten to six and she still needed to get dressed, do her hair, and get to the compound, which was a good 15 minutes away. So she rushed to her closet and found a bright pink short-sleeved button-up blouse with ruffles on either side of the buttons, a blue jean skirt that went two inches above her knees, and some white strap on sandals.

After she got dressed she looked in the body-length mirror and approved. She then went into the bathroom and brushed her hair. But because she didn't have enough time to braid it she tied it into a ponytail at the nape of her neck with a white ribbon. She didn't put any make up on because she liked to be completely natural. Next she went into her jewelry box and pulled out a silver chain necklace, with the kanji for 'courage' spelled out in red. She was gonna give it to Obito as a present. So with that she left out of the house after writing a note to Minato, telling him that she would not be able to make dinner tonight.

By the time Sakura got to the front door it was five to seven, which was a lucky break for her because she had a moment to compose herself. After a minute she took in a deep breath and rung the door bell. She heard the light patter of feet and when the door opened she looked down to see someone she had never met before.

He was a boy about the age of six, had extremely curly black locks, and the standard deep black eyes of every Uchiha. After blinking twice she leaned down a bit and smiled.

"Hello I'm Haruno Sakura. Who might you be?"

The boy grinned, much like Obito, and spoke." Nice to meet cha Sakura-san! My name is Uchiha Shisui!"

Sakura was a little taken back by his courageous behavior. He is definitely closely related to Obito to be another Uchiha that actually showed his emotions so openly. Not only that she had heard of 'Shisui of the body flicker' and how he was the only person able to give Itachi a run for his money, but, she never knew what he would be like personality wise. But she is not going to complain about it cause if he was anything like Obito she was gonna like him.

" Nice to meet you as well Shisui."

"Are you here for Obito's celebration?"

"Yep! May I please come in?"

" Hai!"

Sakura entered in and took off her shoes at the entrance. She continued on the smooth wooden floor, following Shisui.

"Mikoto-baa your guest has arrived!" called out Shisui.

Mikoto, who has just finished setting the table looked up." Ah! Sakura you made it." said a cheerful Mikoto." Well Obito-kun will be down in a second with Itachi-chan, because he will be staying here for a few months, while, his parents are away. And as for my husband he will be here by eight o' clock."

" Okay Mikoto, is there anything you need help with?"

" Yes, I just need help carrying the food. Thank you."

"No problem."

After Sakura and Mikoto placed the food down they heard the sound of feet pattering through the hall and in popped Obito and Itachi.

"Eh? Sakura-chan, your here too?" questioned a confused Obito.

"Hehe. Hai Mikoto invited me this morning." she said smiling.

"And you didn't tell me earlier because?" pouted Obito.

" I wanted it to be a surprise."

" Okay everyone lets eat." spoke Mikoto.

" Itadakimasu!" spoke everyone at the same time.

After a little bit of eating Mikoto struck up a conversation.

" So Obito-kun, you never did tell me how Sakura helped you get the sharingan."

" Oh, well she put me in a realistic genjutsu and that caused me to awaken it."

" Oh, so you scared him with it?" asked Shisui.

" Well it was not meant to be a scary one, it was more of a tough realistic situation that put enough stress and pressure on him to awaken it." clarified Sakura.

" I see. Well thank you. I'm so glad to see Obito-kun so happy." said a grateful Mikoto.

" Mikoto-baa~" whined Obito. Which caused the people at the table to chuckle.

" Obito-kun," called out sakura so she had his attention." I brought you a little gift."

" Sakura-chan you didn't have to." Said Obito a bit put out. Sakura has already done so much for him, even if she will ever know and for her to give him a present on top of everything else would be too much.

" I know. But I wanted to. Now close your eyes." She got up and walked behind him, then, placed the necklace around his neck gently." Okay open them." she said as she sat back down in her seat.

Obito opened his eyes and looked down. His eyes widened when he saw what was attached to the chain and looked to Sakura for some explanation.

" It sorta shows where you started at. You had so much courage in the beginning even if you knew you were not the strongest of the team you are willing to go the extra mile for them. And so that necklace shows what you best represent."

"Thank you Sakura-chan. So much." said Obito as he clutched the necklace to keep from crying. He has never been so happy. He was forced to endure all the taunts from his clan because he didn't act like them and didn't have the sharingan. He was called to many names by the younger Uchihas and the older ones only showed pity or ignored him all together. And he secretly knew that his parents were disappointed that he was not 'normal.' And that really hurt him to know that's how they felt about him. Mikoto was the only Uchiha that showed him kindness instead of pity, along with his little cousins Shisui and Itachi, but, that was it. So for Sakura to go out of her way to help him gain his sharingan, but to also tell him that he had something to begin with even without the sharingan made him really happy.

Which is why he couldn't resist getting up and hugging her.

" Your welcome Obito-kun. I'll always be there for you from now on, no matter what." Sakura said hugging him back.

When eight thirty rolled around so did Fugaku. He calmly came into his home and heard the ruckus, no doubt from that celebration party for Obito for finally getting his sharingan. At least the boy would no longer be _as much_ of an embarrassment to the clan as he already was with his emotions, now that he's got it. Thought Fugaku as he rounded the corner to join them for supper.

Pink. Was the first thing that came to mind as he came into the dinning area.

"Ah, honey your home." said Mikoto as she got up and gave her husband a kiss on the cheek.

" Yes. I apologize for running late, but, the clan meeting took longer than expected."

"That's fine dear. We were still celebrating anyways."

"I see though I didn't know we were going to have guest."

Sakura understood when being asked to introduce herself and stood.

" It's a pleasure to meet you Uchiha-sama. My name is Haruno Sakura, I am Obito's second sensei." She said and bowed with respect she learned from all of the diplomatic meetings she had with Tsunade, what with being her apprentice and all.

" Hn. A pleasure to meet you as well Haruno-san. You must be the one Obito was talking about who helped him awaken his blood line."said fugaku as he went and sat down at the head of the table, where Mikoto placed his warm dinner in front of him.

Sakura nodded, then took a seat again.

"Ne ne, Sakura-chan, do you think you can help me awaken my sharingan too?" asked Shisui.

" How about this sShisui-kun, if your 12 and still have not awakened it, I will help you out, deal?"

" Deal."

"Speaking of, have you already started your ninja training at the academy?" asked Sakura.

" Yep! And I'm doing great! Well...except for studying, that's above average, but everything else is excellent." replied Shisui grinning.

" That's nice. And in a few years Itachi will be starting the academy as well correct?"

" Yes. However he has begun training already in order to quickly raise through the ranks and become the best." answered Fugaku sternly.

" Itachi-kun is already training? Well is he still able to play and relax as well?" Though Sakura already knew the answer. She had heard many stories on how the clan always pushed Itachi from day one without giving him any choice and she wanted to make sure that didn't happen this time around.

" He does not need time for that, he needs to be the best." Fugaku answered haughtily, a little frustrated that his methods were being questioned.

" With all do respect Uchiha-sama, Itachi is still only four years old. Though it is okay to train him you must still remember that he is a child and needs time to be one. Especially with the war going on."

" And who are you to question me?" asked Fugaku, his eyes flashing red at being told what to do.

" I am the best damn medic you will ever see and I know that you shouldn't push a child so much. Not only will it affect his health and mental state of mind, but, he will not actually want to be a shinobi if he is pushed too much."

" You're the best medic? Impossible. That title belongs to the legendary sanin Tsunade."

" Not anymore. She was my teacher, however, I surpassed her. Therefore I know what I'm talking about Uchiha-sama."

"...Do you really think it is unwise to constantly train him?" asked Fugaku sighing. He had no idea about someone surpassing Tsunade, so he knows that this girl with _pink_ hair must be someone worthy of an opinion. Besides he mainly pushed Itachi because of the elders, they always said that Itachi must be the best to bring honor to the clan. And though he wants his son to be the best, he doesn't want his son to hate the life he is going to be living and be controlled by the elders.

"Uchiha-sama, Itachi can be a kid and a magnificent ninja as well. The only difference will be he can enjoy both lifestyles. So what if it takes him an extra year to get into ANBU, I know he will be able to do it and make you proud." Sakura said smiling softly, happy that he is not as unreasonable as she thought he would be.

" Is that what you truly believe?"

" The joy is in the journey, Uchiha-sama, so let him enjoy it and rise through the ranks as he see fit."

" Are you alright with that son?"

Itachi just blinked, he didn't know what to say. The fact that he was being allowed to have a choice in the matter was a miracle in itself. He had been training constantly since last year and assumed that it was going to be like this for the rest of his life, well he obviously assumed wrong. He looked over to the strange woman that his mother ran into just today and realized that she is already changing his life. And so far he is welcoming it.

" I am fine with that otou-san." He finally answered after finishing his thoughts.

" Then your training will be cut down so that you may have two hours of free time half way through and finish early enough to rest an hour before supper. For now." Decided Fugaku.

Mikoto was just sitting there watching in amazement at how Sakura not only helped Obito, but, also stood up and somehow managed to get Fugaku to lessen Itachi's training. She thought that her son would forever be miserable because of all the pressure the elders were putting on him and she thought she would never be able to do anything about it. But here comes this woman practically demanding that Fugaku allow Itachi to be who he wants to be and she just couldn't believe it. Maybe she should start being more assertive and remind her husband and the elders that she was, and secretly still is, a highly decorated ANBU, Itachi is _her_ son, and that she will do as _she_ pleases not some hundred year old bags, who wouldn't know humanity if it bit them in the ass.

Yes thing were definitely going to change around here. And Sakura is sure as hell going to be apart of it.

" Congrats cuz! You got the old stiff to lay off you a little." whispered Shisui, but, he was so loud that everyone heard him anyway and so everyone laughed except Fugaku, whose eye twitched as he kept eating. Then everyone went on celebrating with cake and random conversations.

After a little while Sakura told the Uchihas that it was about time she headed home. The three youngest Uchihas instantly protested, but, Sakura told them she had things to do and that it was getting late. The door bell rang as she was standing to leave out.

" Now who could that be?" wondered Mikoto as she got up to answer the door, with Sakura, Obito, Shisui, And Itachi following in a cute little line. "Ah, Minato what a pleasant surprise."

"Nice to see you to Mikoto. I'm here to pick up Sakura if you don't mind."

" Not at all. Sakura you didn't tell me that you had a handsome gentleman waiting for you." Said Mikoto slyly.

" That's because I don't." mumbled Sakura, but, Minato heard it with his keen sense of hearing.

" Well I didn't want Sakura to walk home alone this late at night. Besides we live together anyway so it not that big of a deal."

" L-live together!" shrieked a bewildered Mikoto.

Sakura not wanting Mikoto to get the wrong idea tried to protest, but Minato stopped her." Yep! Now I would like to thank you for taking care of Sakura for me and have a good night." Spoke Minato as he grabbed Sakura's hand and began walking away.

" You two have a good night as well!" called out Mikoto, fully excepting this with ease.

"Minato! What the hell? I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye." complained Sakura.

" Well I barely got to spend time with you at all today, so I figured I would pick you up."

" How did you even know I would be there?"

"I looked for you chakra signature."

" Right. But I didn't know you would miss me so much." she teased looking up at him.

" Well you are my source of entertainment. Like a dancing monkey." he replied back grinning when he saw her go red with anger.

" You bastard!" she yelled trying to take a swing at him, but, he was to fast and dodged, catching her wrist in the process.

" Now now, no need for violence, Sa-ku-ra." he whispered her name in her ear when he pulled her closer.

" Let me go, I'm mad at you." said Sakura pouting like a child.

" I thought we were through with pouting."

" I thought we were through with insults."

" Never cause they are to fun. And you are the one who called me a bastard."

" After you called me a monkey!"

" Well you started it by not seeing me more."

" Well get used to it because with me working at the hospital and training Rin, we will not see each other often. Even if we do live together."

" That means I should really make this weekend count, huh?" Minato wondered aloud.

" Eh?"

"Alright then Sakura tomorrow we are going on a date!" said Minato with a wide grin.

" Hey you can't just decide things on your own!" complained Sakura as she tried to pull her writ back from Minato, who started walking again.

" It's either the date or sex."

Sakura flushed three different shades of red and finally yanked her arm back from Minato.

"Fine. But this better be a nice date." said Sakura, blushing as she took Minato's hand a continued to walk forward.

Minato looked down at their joined hands and smiled, easily matching her pace and gripping her hand back.

Both of them enjoying the warmth spreading through their bodies as they walked home in the cold evening.

* * *

** Sorry it took so long to update! I have been very busy so I decided to give you guys an extra long chapter!**

**Plz review so that I will have more motivation to update faster! And thx for reading! :D**

**Bye Bye~**


	6. Chapter 6

_Date  
_

**disclaimer; I don't own Naruto.**

Sakura has just finished getting ready for her date with Konoha's number one bachelor, not that she knew, Minato. She was wearing a brights green dress, that was a bit brighter than her eyes, that went to her knees, a half button-up jacket that was a forest green color, for some sleeves in case it got cold, and silver one-inch heels. She also put on some bright green stud earrings with a matching necklace, and put her hair in a high ponytail, tied with a silver ribbon, with her usual bangs framing her face. She added a dash of lip gloss and mascara and grabbed her silver purse before she left the room.

Minato told her last night to wear something nice, but casual. And it was time for her to got downstairs and meet him. When she got to the bottom of the stairs she saw Minato near the entrance, though he hasn't noticed her presence because he was checking over himself after he finished tying his shoes.

" Minato." Sakura called softly to get his attention.

He looked up and instantly his eyes looked dazed. Sakura wondered what had him so distracted, but just decided to wait a minute because she was looking over Minato. He was wearing a short sleeve open white vest, over a forest green long sleeved shirt, that was rolled up to his elbows. He also wore blue jeans and green and white sneakers, with a silver watch on his right wrist. Sakura thought he looked amazing and couldn't keep the small blush from creeping up on her cheeks, when she thought about going on a date with someone as good-looking as him.

Minato was also checking her over, which is why his eyes were glazed. He loved that she was wearing green, not only because it was Konoha's main color, but because he was wearing it as well and they looked even more like a couple. Which would show all the guys that looked her way that she was taken. He also noted that he hair was up and that it was wavy instead of straight like it looked when in the long braid, which also made him happy because her hair looked like a pink sea of waves that he could float in for eternity.

Snapping out of his daze, he noticed that she was looking at him as well and that there was a small blush on her cheeks. " Like what you see?" he asked smirking.

" Yes." she answered without thinking, causing he cheeks to redden even more and Minato to smirk even wider as he watched her stumble for words.

" I mean...you look...okay, but...erm..."

" Well I think you look beautiful." he said as his smirk turned into a smile.

Sakura looked up at him and smiled." Thank you."

Minato stuck out his arm for her to take, which she did, and he lead her out of the house and after locking it, took her through the streets of Konoha to stop one of their date.

The first place Minato took her to was a movie theater. I looks similar to the old one from her time before they tore it down and made a new one, with more advanced technology.

"I thought we could see a movie of your choice for the first part of the date." said Minato as he walked her over to the large sign that displayed the movie options.

" Hmm~, how about this one, it's suppose to be an action,comedy." said Sakura pointing to the movie named "A Spy's Spirit".

"Sure, it's playing in a few minutes, so we can get some snacks before it starts." Minato agreed as he and Sakura walked over to the ticket man and purchased theirs. Afterwards they went to the snack stand to get refreshments. Sakura ordered a large chocolate ice cream, small sized popcorn, and a blue rasberry slushy, while Minato ordered some small nachos, medium sized popcorn, and an orange crush soda. When Sakura went to get her money, Minato quickly stopped her and paid. As they walked away from the stand Minato whispered.

" Remember, this is a date and as the guy I pay for it. You just keep looking gorgeous and enjoy it." he spoke finishing with a wink that made Sakura feel like she was a thirteen year old girl because her insides were melting.

When they got in the theater the movie quickly started.**(wish it was like that in real life, damn ad commercials.)** The movie was about a guy, Light, who is an FBI agent and went undercover to discover why powerful people have been disappearing for the last few months. He is also teamed up with a beautiful and deadly partner, Malina.

The movie was really good with all the action scenes and jokes, but when they got to the romance Sakura was unprepared for it.

_" Light, you can go it's suicide to face them all on your own!" shouted Malina. Over their stake out together both had grown to care for the other in more than just friendship._

_" I have to. And tomorrow I will be going, whether I come back alive or not." confirmed Light._

_" Then please, before you go grant me on last wish." spoke Malina softly._

_" I can try."_

_" Please make love to me, it's something I need from you, if this is truly going to be our last night together."_

_" Malina..."_

_" I love you Light and if I'm going to lose you I want to give you my everything before you go."_

_" I love you too, Malina." spoke Light as he cupped her face with his hands and kissed her slow and passionately._

Sakura's eyes widened at this and she knew what was coming next, which caused her face to heat up. She looked around the darkened theater and noticed, much to her embarrassment that many of the couples were having their **own** explicate scene, from tongues to touches. She chanced a glance at Minato and saw that he was to busy paying attention to the movie, which she thanked kami for, and turned back to the movie. Forgetting all about the fact of what is going on in it for a split second.

_"Ahh...ahh...Light, please..." moaned Malina._

_" What is it you desire Malina?" asked Light in a husky voice. He had already entered her, but was going slow._

_" Please...faster...harder."_

_" With pleasure." and with that they went through their love making enjoying their last known night together._

By the time the movie was over Sakura could not get out of there fast enough, because there was another explicate scene at the end. Her face resembled a tomato and there were swirls in her eyes from over heating and not enough oxygen.

" Sakura," called Minato, but Sakura was so lost in thought that it caused her to jump. She looked at him, after the swirls disappeared and her blush lessened, though it was still visible. Minato grinned " You sure know how to pick a movie."

Sakura's face now beat a tomato by a mile and she could do nothing but try and hide it with her hands.

" Don't make fun of me." she mumbled in her hands, but knew he still heard her.

Minato walked over to her and gently pulled her hands away."Don't hide your cute face from me, Sakura." he spoke softly as he stared into her beautiful bright green eyes.

Sakura was staring into his deep blue eyes as well, nearly drowning in them, until someone called her and Minato's name.

"Sakura! Minato! What are you guys doing here?" came a loud female voice.

And when Sakura turned around she was a little surprised to see Kushina and some guy she was pulling along with her.

" Kushina, nice to see you." said Minato as he let go of one of Sakura's hands, but made sure he was still holding the other.

" You too, but it looks like I was interrupting something, huh?" she said with a smug grin towards Sakura, whose eyes widen and she quickly tried to come up with an excuse.

"Your wrong! We were just...just leaving the movies." she rushed out.

" Uh-huh, and doesn't leaving require moving, or have I been wrong for the past 20 years?" she asked sarcastically.

" S-shut up!" said Sakura as she looked away embarrassed, when Kushina's grin widened.

" Minato, been a long time." spoke the mysterious man after a minute.

" Sure has Roy, how have your missions been?" asked Minato with a smile.

" Fine, but with the war and all, I'm sent out more often, which sucks. I think you had the right idea in being a genin instructor first and ANBU opt second. " the man dubbed as Roy complained, to which Minato laughed.

" Haha. I didn't leave ANBU for those reasons and you know it." he then paused and looked at Sakura before pulling her a bit forward." By the way this is Sakura, she has recently become of my team."

" Nice to meet you, I'm Hitsugaya Sakura." introduced Sakura as she stuck out her hand.

" Nice to meet you as well, Sakura-san, I'm Uzumaki Roy." he said shaking her hand.

"Uzumaki...?" Sakura questioned looking at Kushina.

"Ah, he's not related to me blood wise, when he was 11 and I was 8 his mother married into the clan. We were close friends for two years till I moved here , but we wrote each other every month. A year after me and Minato broke up, he moved here as well and some time after that we began dating." she clarified.

" Oh, that makes sense. But um, what are you doing here?" Sakura asked again.

" Oh, I almost forgot! We were going to see a movie that will be starting soon. Come on Roy we gotta hurry. Bye Minato, Sakura, have fun on the rest of your date and we should get together soon, dattebane!" shouted Kushina as she pulled Roy with her.

"Hahaha, Kushina is like her hair, a real wild fire." laughed Sakura as she turned to Minato.

" I can't argue with that." grinned Minato as he tugged on her hand." Come on, we still have time before the main part of our date."

It was about 6;15 pm and the sun would be setting around 7;30 pm, so Minato had time to make sure they were in his special spot that he spent all morning and part of the afternoon preparing. So he and Sakura took a walk through the village, talking about anything and everything along the way.

"Minato, we've been walking for nearly an hour to this 'special place' of yours, when are we gonna get there?"

"Actually the walk was to kill time, but now we are almost there."

Sakura huffed, but kept silent. She wondered why they were going so deep into the forest on the other side of the village, but knew that Minato would not tell her just to mess with her.

"Here we are." said Minato breaking her out of her thoughts as he opened up a tall but thin bush.

Once Sakura was on the other side and could see properly, the sun was blocking her vision, she couldn't help bust gasp. The place was magnificent. There was a small water fall, that was about twice as tall as Sakura, so it was still hidden well by the very tall trees, that lead into a medium sized river with small waves, there was also a large cherry blossom tree, that was starting to bloom, beautiful flowers of many different colors surrounded by fresh green grass. But what shocked Sakura was the neatly made picnic as if on display that was under the great tree.

" Minato, did you set all this up?" she asked as she came closer and noticed the triangle sandwiches, chips, fried pickles, watermelon, and sparkling cider.

" Yes, it was the best I could do. Sorry if it's not what you had in mind for dinner, I'm not good with steak, fish, or anything fancy." said Minato coming up from behind her, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

Sakura turned and wrapped her arms around Minato's neck. " How can I not be grateful for all this effort you put into this date." she said smiling at him honestly." And just so you know, this place beats some stuffy load restaurant any day."

" Well then, let's eat!" And with that they both removed their shoes and sat down on the blanket, which Sakura thought had a nice design, instead of it having a red and white plaid pattern, it had diamond shapes on it starting at blue on one end then changing to green at the other, with a white background. Something told Sakura, Minato had a thing for green and blue, however she decided to bring it up later and enjoy the food.

After a little while of peaceful silence Sakura asked something that had been bothering her." Ne, Minato?" She waited till he looked at her." Why did we need to kill time before we came here?"

Minato finished his drink then looked up into the sky for a minute." Cause I needed to time this just right and in about 30 seconds you'll see why, if you stare at the river."

Sakura gave him a questioning glace, but complied. After a few seconds Sakura's eyes widened when she saw not only the clear blue river, but also the waterfall change into a reddish-orange color. And it was not from the sun's reflection.

" H-how?"

Minato chuckled at her bewildered expression." I know amazing, right."

" Yeah." said Sakura with a smile.

" I found this place a year back by accident and it was around this time that I watched the water change colors. I was so shocked at first, however when I saw it change from reddish-orange to purple when the moon came out, I knew I was not just seeing things."

" No way it turns purple as well! Are there any other colors?" Sakura questioned excitedly.

Minato laughed now, her expressions keep changing so fast that he can help, but be intrigued by her. In more ways than one. " Yes actually, it turns green with the first few hours of sunlight every morning."

" Really?! Oh Minato, can we stay so I can see it?"

" You mean stay out here all night?"

" Well, yeah, I would be more than willing to stay out here all night, if it meant staying with...you." she said looking at him through her bangs shyly, with a small blush.

Minato paused for a minute to make sure he heard right. Sakura, one of the most stubburn people he has ever met, just said that she liked being with him and would stay out in the cold night just to be with him. He grinned and pulled her onto his lap, with her leaning against his right arm.

" Well then, I guess we should get close and comfortable to keep warm throughout the night."

Sakura's blush deepened and she quickly sat up off of his lap." I-it's sill early and I want to put my feet in the water." she said trying to get up, however Minato grabbed her wrist.

" You know, you've been blushing a lot today."

" No I haven't! Now let go!"

" Could it be that, this is your first date?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

" Well sorry, if I'm new to everything. I was kinda busy with training, moving up in the ranks, missions, and ,oh yeah, a WAR!" she shouted, getting a bit defensive.

" Excuses, excuses, but I'll let it slide for now, Cherry." spoke Minato as he let go of her and waved his hand as if to dismiss her.

" Good, because - did you just call me Cherry?"

" Yep! that's your knew nickname, congrats you upgraded!" he said all to chipper.

" But why Cherry?"

" Cause it's part of your name and you've been blushing a lot today, which made you resemble one."

*sigh*" Whatever, I should just save my breath with you, huh sunshine?" she questioned grinning back at him.

" Yep! You - you did not just call me sunshine." he said all chipperness gone.

" And what if I did, **sunshine**, you gonna smother me with happiness and positive thinking?" teased Sakura as she stood up.

" No~. I'm gonna pin you to the ground and force you to call me what I really am." said Minato as he folded his pant legs to his knees already knowing where this is going.

"And what would that be?" questioned Sakura as she took off her jacket and moved back slowly.

"Adonis in the flesh."

Sakura snorted." More like Medusa's yellow-haired twin brother." and took off.

" Oh no you don't!" and Minato gave chase into the river, where they splashed at each other and laughed whole heartedly.

After a while of splashing they both went back to the blanket. Minato laid down first and pulled Sakura so that she was on top, with her head resting on his chest and his arms wrapped around her waist. They both looked back at the river in time to see the water change to purple. And the crescent moon made it look all the more beautiful.

" Though I've never been on a date before, I would have to say this has been one of the best I've ever heard of."

" It's not the best yet." spoke Minato as he cupped her face and made her look at him. She slowly leaned up and her eyes closed. Minato quickly closed the gap between them.

Their lips molded against each other practically perfectly and that familiar warmth from last night was present again. Minato licked Sakura's lower lip asking for entrance and she quickly opened up. Minato was hit with chocolates and strawberries, while Sakura was hit with peppermint and vanilla. Their tongues glided against one another savoring every taste, every mewl, every grunt. They both pulled away when the need for air became to great, leaving a trail of saliva connecting them.

" Now it's the best." declared Minato.

Sakura giggled and agreed with him. They spent the whole night talking, joking, and of course kissing, until the early morning, when the river changed. Sakura was ecstatic to see the water change, but soon after, sleepiness caught up with the both of them and they fell asleep. Bright and early, fully content in each others arms.

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**Just wanted to give yall what cha want!**

**Hope the chapter wasn't too boring, the next one will be more productive in the whole scheme of things!(Hopefully)**

**Thx for reading.**

**Review to see what's new in the next installment of BNB!**

**C Ya Later!**


	7. Chapter 7

Blossom's new bloom

**Disclaimer; i don't own Naruto  
**

It has been three weeks since the date and true to Sakura's words, Minato barely saw her at all. She was rarely home from working long hours in the hospital, teaching Rin, and just recently working with the Ame kids. They arrived two weeks prior and have slowly, but surely began getting use to the buildings and the people they work with. When they first arrived they were extremely cautious and barely talked to anyone, but each other. However after a few choice words from Obito, Kakashi's smart mouth, and Rin's love of talking, they began slowly, but surely responding to the team.

The Ame kids, Nagato, Yahiko, and Konan were all fourteen and moved into a small, but nice house near the edge of Konoha, so that they can have more privacy from the other villagers. Though they were not going to be there for more than a few months or at most a year, because they were trying to fix Ame's government, Sakura needed to make sure they were tied to Konoha and knew that the village was not against theirs. Which is why they have been speaking with her and the Hokage to devise a plan to take out Honzo and create a secret treaty between the two villages, so than when the time is right they can join forces when necessary. Sakura has not told them about everything she knew, however she did tell them that when they create a rebellion in the next year, they will have to deal with Honzo, who will try and kill them no matter what, even through means of a false peace treaty.

Sakura used to have to be a diplomat for her Shishou before and during the alliance with the other nations, so she went and did some research on all the nations and past conflict, conferences, ect. She discovered, while in the more restricted area of the archives, that Donzo and Honzo worked together in order to trick the Ame kids and get close enough, to where he forced Nagato to kill their leader, Yahiko. And she knew that just like Kakashi, Nagato would change drastically and not for the better if that happened, so she needed to keep all three of them alive.

During the times the Ame trio weren't in long meetings with the Hokage and herself, they would be training with Jiraiya or team seven. Which helped said team work together better and push themselves harder in order to beat their opponents. Sakura always thought a little rivalry never hurt anyone. It worked for her and Ino in getting Sakura out of her shy phase, Rock Lee and Neji, and of course Sasuke and Naruto. Though the latter did take it a bit to far. Sakura has also been teaching a bit of medical ninjutsu to Konan, when she is teaching Rin. A little medical knowledge never hurt anyone and because Konan and Rin needed to spend more time with girls instead of their male teammates. And when they did she discovered Konan's little crush on Yahiko.

She works in the hospital everyday and lately the hokage has been discussing making her head medic for her outstanding performance. But Sakura would like to remain as a regular doctor for a little while longer, so that she can still teach Rin and Konan and continue in her own research. In her free time she has been working on finding out how to seal Kurama into a host, without killing the sealer. And along the way discovered multiple seals that can be useful in battle. She has asked Kushina to accompany her in her research on several occasions, but never revealed to her about the nine-tails seal research. Kushina has been a great help in understanding and learning a few and they have grown closer each time they meet.

Today she was finally going to see Minato for the first time in three weeks. She was going to be watching Team Minato vs. Team Ame, instead of researching. Though she knew that at night when she comes stumbling into the living room and passes out on the couch often, that it is Minato, who is kind enough to put a blanket on her and sometimes even make breakfast for her. She really appreciates it and him, though every now and then she thinks of her blonde, her friends, and her home. Kurama is there to console her telling her that even though things will never be the same between her and her unborn friends, that at least she will be able to watch them live happy lives, with all, most, or just some of their family.

Once she arrived she saw both teams huddled together at opposite ends of the field, no doubt discussing how they were going to beat the other team. She also saw Jiraiya talking with Minato near a tree on the other side of the clearing. They were so engrossed in their conversation, that they didn't see or hear her move and take a seat under the tree. And so when they finished talking and sat down, they nearly jumped out of their skin at seeing Sakura right there.

"Well isn't that a warm welcoming." teased Sakura dryly.

" When did you get here?" asked Jiraiya as he tried to calm his racing heart

" And how much did you here?" questioned Minato.

" Relax _ladies,_ I just got here, so sadly I didn't hear the latest gossip." she answered.

" Hey!" shouted Jiraiya, while Minato twitched.

" Hey~" replied Sakura as if she were talking to her best girl friend.

" No not "hey~", I mean hey!"

" Hey is for horses, sir." Sakura scolded playfully.

" I just can't win." pouted Jiraiya, while Minato patted his back.

" You never can with women." he spoke wisely.

" You guys, it looks like both teams are ready to begin." said Sakura gaining their attention.

Jiraiya stood and moved forward a bit, while raising his hand." And...BEGIN!" he shouted and both teams jumped back.

Konan immediately sent paper shurikens at team seven, who all did their best to dodge, but Rin and Obito got a few cuts here and there. Next Rin sent a genjutsu to team Ame. Nagato and Konan broke it after a minute, but Yahiko was still stuck in it and that's when Kakashi charged for him. Nagato seeing what he was doing quickly did some hands signs and called out, _wind style; wind razor jutsu!_ The wind was cutting up any and everything in it's path, Kakashi was forced to jump out of the way and by that time Yahiko broke free of the genjutsu.

Obito stepped up and shouted, while finishing his hand signs _fire style; fireball jutsu!_ and created a huge fireball that went flying towards team Ame, who moved out of the way. But team seven used that as a distraction, because Rin began throwing kunai and shuriken at Konan, Obito was in a taijutsu spar with Yahiko, and Kakashi pulled out his tanto and started striking Nagato.

However team seven didn't have the upper hand for long. Konan disappeared into a flurry of butterflies and surrounded Rin, then making a paper rope laced with chakra appear and tied her up swiftly. Obito backed up from his sparing opponent and did some hand signs and called out_ fire style; fire phoenix jutsu! _and sent shuriken shaped fire at Yahiko, who just finished his own hand signs and called out_ water style; water cannon jutsu! _and puffed out his cheeks widely, then shot high pressure water towards Obito. He singed the flames and now his water cannon was heading straight towards Obito, who could not move in time and was hit, sending him into a tree and collapsing on the ground with two kunai pinning him to the tree. Kakashi was about to strike a finishing blow on Nagato, when he disappeared in a gust of wind and reappeared behind him with a kunai at his throat.

"It's over." spoke Nagato calmly.

Kakashi and Obito cursed, while Rin sighed as they were all released.

Jiraiya began clapping slowly." Well that was better than last time. Team Minato was able to work together a bit more and caught my team off guard here and there, that's an improvement. Now come on team, let's celebrate, then get back to training for a little while longer." he said patting the kids on their head and ushering them out of the clearing.

Sakura and Minato walked over to their team. "Is this how it went down last time?" questioned Sakura.

" Yes, though they lasted longer, they were still defeated by the same opponents." answered Minato.

" I just don't get it! We were more prepared than last time and caught them off guard, but they still managed to beat us easily!" shouted an angered Obito.

" It can't be helped Obito, they are older and had more training than we did, so of course they will beat us." spoke Rin as she healed Obito, though she was a bit upset too.

" You guys really don't see what your problem is?" asked Sakura. But when she was met with confused gazes, besides Minato she sighed." It doesn't matter how much longer they have been training right now. What matters is how you find their weak spots and use them to your advantage." she paused for a moment then continued." Rin did you notice how it took Yahiko longer to break your genjutsu than the others." she received a nod." That means that, if you were to go one on one you could trap him in one and take him down. Plus his element is water, which is weak against earth, so you would have the advantage there as well, but because Obito, a fire element went and challenged the element it is weakest against he lost. However if he were to fight Konan who uses paper, he could have a greater chance." she watched as a look of realization passed through both kids eyes." And Kakashi, your opponent is a bit tough, however if you can distract him long enough and pin him down then his speed will be useless. You should try building your speed and taijutsu up and try using different weapons to save your tanto for last." Kakashi had a thoughtful look.

"Sakura is right you guys. Though you are getting better at teamwork and strategizing, it will all be a wast if you put yourselves against people, who you automatically have disadvantages of. When you used Obito's attack as a distraction that was good, but after a minute elemental nature took it's course and caused you all to lose." explained Minato.

" You guys are going to have a better chance next Saturday, because this week your getting into your elemental groups and will be learning ninjutsu every Tuesdays and Thursdays, so you will have a few days to practice and you now have figured out what you need to work on with your plans." encouraged Sakura.

Team Seven grinned up at their teachers.

" Well what are we waiting for Christmas? Let's start some speed and stamina training, while we still have the rest of the day!" shouted a pumped up Obito. Rin jumped up and nodded her head in agreement and Kakashi "hn'ed" and got into a ready position.

" Alright team I want you to do as many laps as you can around Konoha and when you can barely take another step, then return here. After you catch your breath you will begin taijutsu training with me or Sakura." commanded Minato.

" Hai!" they all shouted as they took off.

Sakura smiled at Minato." I think they will grow up to be even greater ninjas than they were in my time."

Minato nodded his head in agreement. Then grabbed Sakura and pulled her to the ground with him and made her sit on his lap, while he held her tight. "I've missed you, love." he said into the crook of her neck, as he breathed in her scent of jasmine and honey.

Sakura blushed at the nickname. " I've missed you too. And thank you for putting a blanket over me every night I was home passed out on the couch and for cooking breakfast." she thanked burying her face in his golden locks, which interestingly enough smelled like fresh pine and mist.

Minato tilted his head up to look at her." Anytime. You work yourself so hard with the hospital, training Rin and now Konan, trying to form a truce between our village and Ame, and still planing ahead for the future. The least I can do is be there to support you as much as I can, so if you ever need help do _not_ hesitate to ask me, cause I'm here for you, love."

" And as long as I know I'm not in this alone, I will be able to carry on. Thank you, Minato-kun." her eyes soon became half lid, because while talking they were slowly leaning into each other.

After hearing his name, Minato quickly closed the gap between them and expressed how much he miss her through a soft yet passionate kiss. Next Minato grabbed Sakura's lower lip with his and began sucking on it, drawing out a mewl from her. She then moved her legs, so that she was straddling him and swiftly plunged her tongue into Minato's mouth, surprising him a bit. She explored and twisted her tongue around his in order to get his to dance with hers, which he complied. It was slow and sensual at first, then gradually began to get wilder, hotter, and _needier_. They were making up for lost time and soon Minato began to grind his hips into Sakura's causing her to gasp and moan into the kiss.

" Hey! Are we running just so you two can have private make-out time?!" yelled a sweaty Obito.

Kakashi ran by and just made a face of disgust, then continued.

Minato and Sakura were trying to catch their own breaths and once they did, they looked at each other, then back at Obito and commanded in unison. "Keep running Obito!"

"Come on." spoke Rin exasperated as she dragged a grumbling Obito with her.

" You have got to fix your teams 'perfect timing' problem." sighed Sakura, as she turned around , so that her back was flushed against Minato's chest.

He nodded and wrapped his arms around her, while kissing her neck, as they both watched the sunset.

But they chuckled when they heard.

"Hey Kakashi-teme! How did you get in front of me!?"

" Because your slow."

" What did you say?! - Ow!"

" Keep running kono baka!"

" Rin-chan~"

" And a little stealth never hurt anyone either." added Sakura.

"I couldn't agree more."

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**Hope you guys enjoyed it! Had some free time and thought I would update.**

**For thoughs who are reading my other stories, don't worry I'm working on them.**

**Thx for reading!**

**Hasta la bye bye!**


	8. Chapter 8

Blossom's New Bloom

**Disclaimer; I don't own Naruto.**

Sakura sighed as she watched Rin, who was focusing on creating a compound mix that would (hopefully) turn out to be a paralyzing poison, she had finally learned how to bring a fish back from the dead, and was now learning about proper healing techniques and how to treat and create poisons. When both Konan and Rin showed up in her office, (the Hokage insisted she have one, because soon he was hoping she would take up head medic.) she knew something was off about Rin. Normally she is there with a big smile and is ready to learn and improve in her medical training, but today the smile she gave was more like a grimace and more than a few times has Sakura caught a flash of pain show on the girl's face.

It has been a month and a half since Sakura saw the match between the Ame kids and Team Seven. Since then they have already begun learning in their elemental groups. While they were off doing that, Sakura would be either in the hospital, training, in the archives researching on not only seals, but also on the history of Konoha, to see if there was any information on Madara (permission granted by the Hokage.), and as of late, conversing with Jiraiya on sealing techniques.

Though Sakura has noticed that Rin was seeming more depressed and sad as of lately and even Konan picked up on the girls emotions. Sakura figured it was time to address the matter before it got too out of hand. She has come to care for the girl like a sister would and hates seeing her so distraught.

"Rin-chan, is something troubling you?" she asked, with concern laced in her voice.

"W-what?" she replied, jumping up a bit from being pulled out of her concentration.

" I asked if something was troubling you."

" No, of course not Shishou." but when she didn't make eye contact, Sakura knew something was.

" Please Rin-chan , Konan-chan and myself are here to help you, but we can if you don't open up to us."

She looked at both of us for a moment before giving in and when she did, she allowed all of the pain and hurt to show on her face." It's the elemental groups. When I first started I was excited to be learning more jutsus and thought I would finally be able to be a real teammate to Obito and Kakashi-kun. Though I have been learning a new jutsu every week and the instructors are nice..." she trailed off.

"What about the other kids?" Sakura questioned already starting to understand where this was heading.

" Well the boys and I never really talk much and I'm fine with that. And the girls, well, we don't talk either because they only talk about make-up and boys, while I'm interested in my medical studies and learning from the instructors." she took in a shaky breath." But soon the instructors began asking questions and for us to demonstrate the techniques we learned, I have always been more on the bookish side and thanks to your chakra control exercises I was able to learn the jutsus fairly quickly and..."

"And the kids in your group don't like that you can learn the jutsus they struggle with or that you can answer the instructor's questions, while they can't." finished Konan.

Rin deflated a bit. " Yeah, they have started to call me names and be openly hostile towards me when the teachers aren't looking. I enjoy learning there, but when the kids start calling me teacher's pet and saying that I have no friends, it hurts. I try to ignore it, but I can't when I have to see them twice every week."

"Rin-chan, it's okay. They are just jealous that you can do things they can't." soothed Sakura.

"Why would they be. They are always talking about how unfeminine and unattractive I am." she said with tears brimming in her eyes.

" If you believe them then you are an idiot." berated Konan.

" Konan!" called out Sakura as she looked at Rin, who's tears were freely flowing.

However Konan continued." If you can't see how pretty, smart, and strong you are when it comes to your values, then you truly are an idiot."

Rin was shocked and was sniffling, trying to stop her tears." Wha...?"

" And if you still haven't realized that I'm your friend, then I guess you should believe those kids." she said softly this time. Sakura could tell that Konan always appreciated the female contact, but was still a bit unsure how to approach Rin and herself with things, like conversations, because she was used to dealing with only males, like Rin herself.

" Were friends?" whispered Rin.

Konan gave a small smile." Hai."

Rin's face broke out into a huge grin and you would not even be able to tell that she was just upset, with how bright her mood is now.

Sakura smiled as well." What do you girls say we ditch the rest of today's training and go back to my place for some fun?"

" But shishou-"

" No buts Rin-chan. You two have been working hard in your medical studies, team training, and Rin-chan, you with your elemental group. It's time we have some proper girl time." Sakura declared.

"And do what?" asked Konan.

Sakura just grinned and told them" You'll see."

So with that, they quickly packed up and left the hospital to go to Sakura's shared home.

" Now, you girls go into the dinning room and I'll be right back." ordered Sakura as she went upstairs into her room for a few things.

The girls sat at the square wood dinning table with six chairs. Two on either side and one at each end. Soon Sakura came back with a medium-sized box, a thin wire roll wrapped around her wrist, and a stereo, with some CDs.

" Girls we are gonna be making jewelry with beads and thin wire, for necklaces and rings, and earrings with some plain earring wires that come with the little stoppers on the end. And we will be doing this while listening to music and making home-made ice cream sundaes!" she said excitedly. Before the war broke out Sakura and the girls used to get together, with Temari when she was there, and make sweets, talk about what was going on in their lives, and make things from jewelry to knitting scarfs together. They enjoyed doing normal things and being girls, instead of training and trying to keep up and match the boys. They even got together with the older kunoichi and drank together, at seventeen you were considered old enough in the ninja world.

Sakura misses those times where she could share all her doubts and insecurities to them and they would not look down on her because they shared theirs as well and they all tried working together to help each other overcome them. At first it was difficult to get them to open up, what with them being ninja and suspicious by nature, however after a few sessions everyone began to open up more and more till they could tell each other practically everything.

It hurts Sakura to think about the past, which is why she usually busies herself with her straineous schedule and even having to resort to using her chakra to put herself into a dreamless sleep to keep away the nightmares. She knew that she was avoiding the inevitable and that soon reality would come crashing down, but she always pushed those thoughts back deep within her mind and focus on what was happening now. And right now she is going to start a kunoichi tradition a bit earlier than last time.

" Were going to be making jewelry and sundaes?" asked Konan in a flat tone, but you could see the excitement in her eyes. While Rin was practically oozing happiness.

" Yep! And we are going to be getting together like this once every week, unless of course we have a mission or something. But every Saturday evening, we will get together after team training when it is the end of the week and talk about how our week went. Now I know you girls might not want to share your insecurities, but this is going to be a safe spot, here you are not kunoichi, you are young females, who have a right to be normal from time to time without worrying about being called weak or useless, okay?"The girls both looked shocked for a moment, then smiles lit up on both of their faces as they nodded." Good. Now let's turn on the music, open up this box full of beads, decorative stones, and shells, and break out the ice cream and toppings, ne?"

" Hai!" responded both girls enthusiastically.

Sakura placed everything down and put a CD in the round stereo, pushing play it began to playing the song 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun'. Causing both girls to laugh as they started picking out the beads they liked, while Sakura pulled out the ice cream to let it soften, along with chocolate syrup, sprinkles, nuts, gummy worms/bears, M&Ms, and whip cream. Sakura had hidden these from Minato, so he would refrain from eating them, she had wondered when she could get the two little kunoichi to come over and spend some time together having fun, instead of being serious and with Rin needing to be cheered up it proved to be the perfect opportunity.

"Ano..." spoke Rin, once Sakura sat down. The other girls looked at her and she blushed a bit." Can we make friendship bracelets? You know, the ones that are similar, but maybe have a different color or shape. I just want to remember my first real girl time with you both." she requested shyly.

Sakura couldn't help, but smile at her timidness." That sounds like a great idea Rin-chan. We can use the same beads and put them in the same order, but have the main decoration be different based on each person."

" What will be the main decoration?" questioned Rin.

" How about flower beads?" offered Konan.

" That's perfect Konan-chan, and we can make each others. So I will make Rin-chans, who will make Konan-chans, who will make mine. My flower is obvious, Konan's can be a purple rose to match the one in her hair, and Rin-chan I think a magenta colored tulip, would look great on you." both girls readily agreed and they all began talking, laughing, and enjoying being together and just themselves without putting on a tough, cheerful, or strong mask.

They had finished the bracelets and were all happily making their own sundaes, while listening to 'Turn it On' from Shake it Up, when they heard the main door open along with shouts. Soon both boys from Team Seven and Team Ame, along with Minato and Jiraiya came into view.

" Well well well, it looks like we were getting left out of the party." observed Jiraiya.

" Rin-chan, what are you doing here?" questioned Obito.

" Yeah Konan-chan, I thought you were learning medical ninjutsu with Sakura-chama." spoke Yahiko. After getting to know Sakura, Yahiko began calling her 'chama' from a combination of 'sama' and 'chan'. Because he respected her as a ninja and medic and because he was on a friendly level with her. Oddly enough Nagato and Konan also began calling her that too. Saying that they agree with his reasoning and of course Sakura doesn't mind. In fact she finds it cute.

" Well, Shishou thought we deserved a break and since it's Saturday after our training, we decided to have some fun girl time." explained Rin.

" Aw, how com we never get guy time?" whined Obito to Minato.

" Yeah, and sundaes." agreed Yahiko.

" Because you two are idiots." answered Kakashi with his arms crossed.

" Shut up, Kakashi-teme!"

" Boys, let's not do this now. The girls were just having a nice evening and we don't want to ruin it, do we?" scolded Minato.

" No sensei." came both boys defeated voices.

" Good. Because we were just about to enjoy our sundaes." said Sakura as she and the girls took their first bites and hummed in pleasure.

" Is that chocolate ice cream with chocolate syrup, sprinkles, whip cream, and gummy worms?" asked Minato as he walked over to Sakura, who was on the other side of the island.

" Yes." she replied as she scooped another spoon-full, however before it could reach her mouth, Minato grabbed her arm and brought it to his and ate it. Sakura's mouth dropped a bit.

" Pretty good, though it could use some peanuts." he said thoughtful, completely ignoring Sakura's and a few others looks of disbelief's at that fact that he just ate her ice cream from the same spoon.

" Hey! That was my ice cream and now I have to get another spoon!" complained Sakura.

" No you don't, don't be so dramatic Buttercup, here." Minato said as he stuffed another spoon-full of ice cream and shoving it in her mouth.

Sakura blushed a bit, because for some reason it tasted even sweeter than before. However she was not about to try and figure out why. Though she was falling for hard Minato, (she refused to admit love at first sight, because it didn't work out last time and she didn't want to face the pain again.) she was not sure if he felt the same. She knew from watching Genma, Kakashi, Kiba, and many others that a kiss could mean anything from lust, to like, to love and she was not sure where she stood. But she would need to keep her relation with him, whatever it may be, positive, because Kurama said that she would need him in time, if she ever wished to see Naruto again. And she sure as hell was _not_ gonna lose Naruto a second time, although she is not sure how Naruto can be born with Kushina being in love with someone else and all, she knew that Kurama would _never_ allow Naruto to not come into existence. He was just as protective over him as her and she knew that she could trust him with Naruto's life just as he could with her.

" Who are you calling Buttercup? And don't feed me, I am not a child!" she yelled after her face went back to its normal shade.

" It's a cute new nickname for you because Cherry was too obvious. And you could have fooled me." Minato responded with a crooked smile, which Sakura refused to accept that it was the reason why her throat went dry. So to get back at him, she took the spoon from his hand, scooped some more ice cream into it, and threw said scoop right into the center of his face.

Minato did not see this coming. A second ago, she was blushing at the fact that he fed her and now he has ice cream in the middle of his face. He used his hand to wipe it away, not caring that it landed on the counter and looked up to see the shocked faces of all except Sakura, who was trying hard not to laugh. So he did what any man would do in his place.

Used his lightning speed to take the bowl from Sakura and dump it on her head before she could even blink.

After Sakura registered the fact that chocolate ice cream was dripping from her hair to her face, she narrowed her eyes." of course you realize this means war."

" Heck's yeah! FOOD FIGHT!" shouted out Obito. Yahiko grabbed a hand full of gummy bears and threw them at Nagato, who ducked, causing them to hit the girls and making them both drop their sundaes. They both growled and grabbed a hand full of toppings and launched them at the boys.

" As much as I would love to get covered in food by a bunch of brats, I'm gonna pass." said Jiraiya as he left to the women's bath house to do some more research. But before he left he changed the song on the stereo to 'Life is a Highway' and called out." Have fun." and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

The kids were throwing anything they could get their hands on, even throwing hand scooped ice cream at each other. While Minato and Sakura were in an all out chocolate syrup vs. whip cream war. Sakura was dripping with syrup from head to toe and Minato could almost pass for a lumpy version of frosty the snowman. Minato was closing in as Sakura was slowly backing away.

" There's no way I'm gonna let you get -!" but Sakura couldn't finish her sentence because she slipped on the girl's sundaes and was rapidly approaching the floor. Minato noticed this and quickly slid behind her and made a grab for her shoulders, but his hands were slippery from the whip cream and Sakura's body was as well from the chocolate syrup, so he missed and ended up grabbing elsewhere as he fell.

" Are you alright Sakura?" Minato asked Sakura, who was between his legs, with her back flushed against his.

Sakura opened one eye, after closing both readying herself for impact." Yeah I'm fin -!" again Sakura was cut off when she realized exactly _where_ Minato's hands were, causing her to blush.

Minato was about to ask her what's wrong when he looked down and figured it out. His hands were cupping her breast. They instinctively twitched, causing him to squeeze her tighter than he already was.

" Ah!" came Sakura's voice, only lower and more provocative.

Minato's eyes darken for a moment before he regained control over himself. Which he found hard to do. He knew that when it came to Sakura he had a tougher time restraining himself, which is the result of all the kisses. He normally is not so over affectionate in public, however with Sakura he not only _wants_ to touch her, but it feels as if he **needs** to touch her, to be close to her, to hear her angelic voice, or else he might go crazy.

He was brought out of his musings from a harsh whisper from the woman he was just lost in thought about.

" Minato, what the hell are you doing?! Let go!" she commanded, trying to ignore her flushed face.

" Fine," he answered. His warm breath fanning across her face sending shivers down her spine." but this isn't over." he completed as his hands slid down to her waist and he lifted her and himself up." Okay guys, I think fun time is over and it's time to clean up." he said gaining the kids attention.

With complaints from the genin everyone first cleaned up the kitchen and dinning room, then whipped off the ice cream and toppings from their skin with towels. They would get fully cleaned up when they all went home. After the clean up was done Sakura left to her room to lay out some clean clothes. And after she finished she heard a knock at the door.

" Hey Rin-chan, what are you doing up here?" she asked with a small smile.

" Well, I just wanted to thank you Shishou. Today was the first real girl time I have had in years and I really liked it." she said with a fond smile.

" Good, because you're gonna have to get used to it. Like I said before we will be getting together from now on once a week for girl time."

" I'd like that." she spoke as she turned away.

" Hang on a sec Rin-chan, I have something for you."Rin looked at Sakura curiously as she went to a small pink wooden box and pulled out something." Now close your eyes." Rin complied and Sakura placed a chain similar to Obito's around her neck, the only difference was that the kanji was for 'intelligence' and it was light green, instead of red." There, open your eyes."Rin did and looked down, her eyes widening at what she saw.

"Shishou, what is this?"

" That is a necklace and it represents where you stood before I came along." she explained to the younger girl.

" Where I stood before..." Rin whispered as she stared at the necklace.

" Yes and I want you to wear that so you can always look back at how much you have grown. When those kids bully you, just remember that you are stronger than before and are not alone."

Rin had tears gather in her eye, but unlike before, these were tears of joy." Thank you, Shishou."

" Anytime, Rin-chan." she replied as she hugged Rin. Then both girls returned to the dinning room where the others were. Unaware that there was a blond male on the other side of the wall, who heard everything and smiled.

The Following Tuesday;

" Can anyone execute a complete rock wall able to withstand a strong water attack?" asked one instructor named Watori. No one raised their hand, except for Rin." Ah, Rin. Please step forward and slide into ready position." Rin did as instructed. " Here we go. _water style; water bullet jutsu!_ water bullets came rushing at Rin at a fast pace.

Rin preformed the correct hand signs and spoke. "_Earth style; rock wall jutsu!_" a medium size wall came up and took all the hits with ease.

" Good job Rin, that was exactly what I wanted to see. Now moving on..." and the rest of the session went by. The two instructors left and it was just Rin and a few other genin and some young chunin.

" I wouldn't get cocky, little miss ugly." sneered one girl.

" Yeah, quit being such a teacher's pet. It's annoying." agreed a boy. A few others gathered around Rin.

Rin clenched her teeth. " Leave me alone. I am not a teacher's pet, nor am I ugly. I am able to perform the jutsus we learn because I practice hard everyday, just because you can't do it doesn't mean you should get mad at me because your jealous!" she snapped.

A few kids stepped back, shocked by her attitude. While the girl, who spoke earlier got mad and was about to slap Rin, when a hand caught her wrist.

" That's enough." came a stern female voice.

" Stay out of this, Yuhi!"

Said girl glared at the seething blond." No. Rin is right, all you guys do is pick on her out of jealousy and have no right to do so. Now leave or I will be forced to get violent."she threatened.

All the kids scampered off, not wanting to deal with the serious girl. Once they were gone said girl turned to a shocked Rin and smiled a bit. " Hello. I noticed how they picked on you and wondered if you were ever going to stand up for yourself. My name is Yuhi Kurenai, nice to meet you."

" I'm Nohara Rin, nice to meet you as well, Kurenai-san."

" Please call me Kurenai and would you like to join me for some dango?"

" Yes, and please call me Rin." The girls then began to walk over to the sweets shop, talking about their likes, dislikes, and dreams. A new and unexpected friendship was forming before they even knew it.

* * *

Sakura was on her way to the Hokage tower to discuss how his and her research and planning were going. She knocked on the door and heard a faint 'come in.'

" Hokage-sama." she bowed.

" Buttercup."

Sakura's eyes snapped open and she was met with an onslaught of blue and yellow.

" It's good to see you practicing for the near future, but you should be more respectful to the current Hokage." came the voice that always manages to get her heart racing, if she's not careful.

" Sakura-chan, sorry about that, I was just talking to Minato about how I have nominated him to be the next Hokage, is all." came the Sandiame's amused voice. " Please come and take a seat. I have news from a meeting I had with the TI unit and I received a letter from one of our messenger hawks. Minato-kun, you may stay as well. After all, you will need to learn how to handle the village if you are going to become it's kage." both people addressed took their seats." Now first let me start out by telling you that we have located Tsunade and that she will be here within this week."

Sakura glad that they found her ex-teacher, but was not sure how to approach the woman. She is no longer the same Tsunade she knew in the future. This Tsunade never took her on as an apprentice, or became a second motherly figure in her life when she lost both her parents to a bandit attack when she was fifteen.  
But Sakura did know, that to survive this war, with fewer casualties than last before, they would need Tsunade's help, especially with the nine-tails attack that will be happening in 13 months. Speaking of which.

" Hokage-sama, have you come up with a plan for the attack in 13 months?" she questioned.

" Yes, we are working on readying the monument for all the villagers arrival. We do not wish to take a chance that only half of the village is safe, so we are refurbishing it."

" And what of Orochimaru?" asked Minato.

The Hokage's face turned grim." I sent an ANBU team to follow him and watch his movements a month ago. I should be receiving that report around the same time Tsunade gets here. If he is indeed found guilty of illegal human experiments, then I will not show mercy." he said so seriously, that both Minato and Sakura barely suppressed the shiver that went down their spines. There was a reason this man was the Hokage.

However Sakura is unsure if he is ready to have one of his students executed. When she was drunk, Tsunade always went on and on about her past mistakes and Orochimaru came up often. Even if the Sandaime is ready, would his other students be willing to except the fact that their beloved sensei killed their third member? She was about to vocalize her question, when the Hokage cut her off.

" Sakura, I know that you are worried about what will happen if we deal with Orochimaru now, however from what you say about the future and all the evidence we already have now, I can't simply let him go on living and torturing innocent people for his own malicious gain. No matter who he was in the past student, friend, ally, he is not that same young man I knew. Though I knew that something was off when he began to become distant, I tried to ignore the problem and hope that he would see the error in his ways, but from what you said he does in the future, I realized that the world would be better off without him. And I have already talked to Jiraiya about this, with us coming to the same conclusion. I can only hope that Tsunade understands as well." he finished sternly, though his eyes betrayed his pain.

" Hokage-sama, there is something you wish to tell us." Minato stated in a low voice.

The Hokage sighed." Yes. Because of this war, we are going to need more ninja to be available, in case of emergency missions and attacks." at this Minato's eyes narrowed and Sakura's fists clenched." All current ninja and final year academy students will be promoted to the next rank up as of next week." there was a tense silence for a while. " Sakura-chan, how is your research going?" he spoke trying to change the topic and break the silence.

" I still have not found an exact way to be able to seal Kurama, without killing the sealer, even with both Kushina's and Jiraiya's help. Although Kurama said he is trying to recall his first sealing, done by the Shodaime. When he sealed it within his wife Uzumaki Mito, he was still alive afterwards, so that means that there is a possibility to do so."

" I see. At least you know that there is a chance, so you are not left hopeless." the Hokage responded." Also, by the end of the year, the Ame kids shall be leaving in order to form their resistance and try to spread peace through Amegakure."

" Is that all Hokage-sama?" asked Minato.

" Yes, you are both dismissed."

" Minato, you can go ahead. I need to speak with Hokage-sama for a moment." Minato frowned a bit, but complied.

After he shut the door, Sakura turned back to the Hokage." I need to ask that in a few weeks time, you send me to Suna."

" Is there a reason why?" he questioned calmly as he lit his pipe.

" Yes. There I will be meeting a future frenemy, like Nagato-kun, Yahiko-kun, and Konan-chan."

" Who?"

" Akasuna no Sasori."

* * *

** Hoped you enjoyed. **

**And for those waiting on my other stories, sorry. It's just I don't have as much initiative or drive to write those stories as I do with my first two. I will not be abandoning them, because I don't want to do that to you. However, until I get a reason to update, you are going to have to be patient with those. Again sorry.**

**Also, for those confused about Sakura's surname, my bad, I didn't know I put Haruno Sakura before, but it will be Hitsugaya as to not raise suspicion from the Harunos themselves. And who knows, there might be a second Haruno sakura. Or an OC, but we can save that for later.**

**Plz review!**

**Ja.**


	9. Chapter 9

Blossom's New Bloom

**Disclaimer; I do not own Naruto.**

Today was the day Tsunade would be returning to Konoha and Sakura was still unsure on what to do when she saw her. However she also knew that it would be impossible to ignore and stay away from her as well. So she quickly got dressed and went down stairs to be greeted with a note and breakfast.

_Dear Buttercup,_

_Sorry that I could not be there to wake you up this morning, I know how disappointed you are. However the Sandaime called me for an early meeting, to discuss me being the successor of him. I made you breakfast because I know that you are nervous about seeing your old teacher. Please relax and know that you have many people supporting you, especially me. I will see you soon and when I do you better be smiling or else it will be you, me, and a jar of hot peppers.  
_

_Enjoy breakfast and don't think I'm joking about the peppers._

_Love,_

_Minato._

Sakura could not help the small smile that tugged at her lips. A little while ago Minato learned about her dislike for spicy foods and has be using them against her, whenever she overworked herself, or came home at early hours in the morning from researching in the archives. She also finds it funny how Naruto used to do the same thing back when the war was going on.

Oo8oO

_"Sakura-chan!" shouted Naruto as he burst into the medical tent as if he were on fire._

_Sakura sighs as she finishes healing her last patient and allows him to leave." What is it Naruto, can't you see that I'm a bit busy right now?"_

_" Sakura-chan, you should have been back in your tent hours ago. Why are you still here?"_

_"Naruto, they needed me. I had to heal the injured soldiers or else we would lose our already diminishing forces."_

_" Sakura-chan, there are plenty of other medics that are available, you don't have to take on all of the work by yourself when you have people here to help you." he said softly as he came and rested a hand on her shoulder._

_" I know, but I want to help out as much as I can. I don't want to lose anymore allies. Especially after losing Lee, Chouji, and Ten Ten just a few days ago."_

_" I understand. Which is why you must rest properly, that way when an emergency comes up your well rested and have the chakra to handle it. Now if you don't get back to your tent within the next ten minutes, you're gonna get it." he said removing his hand, face taking on a more mischief look._

_Sakura eyed him warily" And if I say no?"_

_He grin, which just made him look even more evil. Sakura could swear she was looking at the orange and yellow version of the Grinch, right now." Kaka-sensei, made his famous super spicy red-hot curry for lunch today. I'm sure he wouldn't mind giving me a plate, especially if he knew what I was going to do with it."_

_Sakura narrowed her eyes." You wouldn't."_

_" Oh, I think we both know I would."_

_The next thing anyone knew blurs of orange and pink could be seen racing through the housing units as if being chased by Uchiha Madara, himself. Sakura never realized that Naruto was trying to cheer her up and distract her from the pain, because he would do anything to keep the sadness and despair off of her face and away from her heart.  
_

Oo8oO

Sakura's eyes began to get misty, however, right now she could not break down and cry. She needed to go and meet her past teacher for the first time and discuss how things are going to be played out for the next year.

* * *

Knock Knock.

" Come in." came the voice of the Hokage. Sakura could also hear other voices quieting down.

" Hokage-sama." said Sakura, nodding respectfully this time, so as not to repeat what happened during her last visit. Then she let her eyes quickly scan the room to see Jiraiya, Minato, and her teacher as well. Tsunade looked the same from her time, which is not surprising considering now is the time she began to use her rejuvenation jutsu.

Tsunade stood up and marched straight in front of Sakura." Is it true?!" she demanded more than asked, vaguely.

Sakura knew what she was asking though." Yes, I am your apprentice from the future, Shishou."

*sigh*" I was hoping that sensei had finally gone off the deep end, when he said I should come home to meet my old apprentice. Well how skilled are you exactly?"

" I had surpassed you a few months before the war started in my time."

" And that was about 20 years into the future where I was more knowledgeable than I am now. No wonder sensei wanted you to take up the head medic position." Tsunade said looking a bit upset, but only Sakura could tell.

" Yes, but you did send me back here with the medical research you, Shizune, and I had done through out my medical career. That is part of the reason I needed you back here, once you and Shizune relearn all the medical knowledge we have gathered together, then our hospital will be advanced beyond its years and we can have a better chance at surviving all the horrible events to come in the next few years." spoke Sakura. The last thing she wanted was for her teacher to feel inferior to her, especially after all this woman did for her. Sakura had no doubt that without Tsunade's guidance she would not be half of the woman that she is today.

" So, my future self planned on me coming back and working with you and Shizune in order to whip Konoha's medical forces into shape, eh?" she said thoughtful.

" Also I was wondering if you could take up the head medic position." everyone looked a little shocked at Sakura's words." As you were filled in about who I am, I'm sure you realize that I am rather busy with a lot more than just teaching on a team and being a doctor. That's why for now, you could be the head medic, so that I can do my research, plan with the Hokage, and go out on missions that need my help. Besides Konoha will need more than just one or two legendary medics, It will need at least three with a competent staff behind them ."

"That is a good idea Sakura-chan." came the third's voice. Sakura and Tsunade moved to the available chairs, one by Minato, which Sakura took and the other by Jiraiya, which Tsunade took." I didn't realize how much you would have to spread yourself thin or how much you were doing it now." he turned to Tsunade." Tsunade, we are going to need you to be head medic. You are the only one, who can straighten up our staff right now and keep our forces that we send to war alive by sending competent medics." he then turned to Jiraiya." Jiraiya, I am going to need you to gather more research for not only the seals Sakura needs, but also information on the war." He paused and took out a scroll." This scroll contains the information I asked ANBU to gather on Orochimaru." everyone tensed as he unrolled the scroll. " Only one member of the team was able to make it back alive sadly. Orochimaru has also disappeared. He knew that once the ANBU member made it back with the scroll that he would not be able to do anything, but leave before his arrest. This scroll confirms his experiments and kidnapping of innocent people. He is now officially a traitor of the leaf." the Hokage concluded as he handed the scroll to his students.

Much to Sakura's shock, Tsunade and Jiraiya did not try to deny his claim and fight for Orochimaru.

" I knew he had changed, but I was too late in stopping him." was Jiraiya's solemn words. He then looked at Sakura." I know your worried that we won't be able to fight against him, but after all you told me and with this scroll it proves that he is no longer the Orochimaru we knew. I can't let this slide any longer and so I am willing to kill him if necessary to protect the village."

" Don't count me out." spoke up Tsunade." I am also willing to fight for Konoha and if that means that I have to kill my ex-teammate, then I will just drown myself in sake after I do."

Sakura was glad that they understood. She knew from her experience with Sasuke, that it is difficult to come to terms with killing your teammate, but in the end it is the only way, if they choose to remain and enemy.

" We can not afford to go after Orochimaru at this point, with the war getting more and more intense." came the Hokage's voice, breaking through the silence." Also I don't want to send either of you after him." he cast a glance to his students." You are both going to be far to busy with the hospital and research. We will face Orochimaru at a more stable time, but right now you two need to get to work."

" Shishou, in my office at the hospital, I have all the medical research in a safe. There is a seal on it, however it is one that you already know of, so you a Shizune can begin learning." Tsunade nodded and both sannin left, one via window and the other through the door like a normal person.

" Minato, the reason why I had you sit in on this meeting, is not only so you would know about Orochimaru, but also because I will be sending you and your ANBU team out on a mission." he handed Minato a scroll." The mission should last a week at the latest. Jiraiya will be in charge of your students till you get back."

" That's reassuring, but what about Sakura?" Minato asked looking a bit curious about why Sakura was not going to be in charge.

" She will be going on her own separate mission, that will take a week to a week and a half."

Minato was looking like he wanted to say something, however he just nodded and left to inform his team.

" Sakura, are you sure you wish to go to Suna?"

" Hai Hokage-sama, I must speak with him and see if he is going to be on our side or not. Besides, I've already faced him once and he was a lot stronger and wiser than he is now, so I should be able to handle myself."

The Hokage nodded." It would be good to know our allies and enemies. Alright, you shall leave tomorrow noon sharp, at the same time as Minato."

" Hai Hokage-sama." Sakura bowed and disappeared in a swirl of red and pink petals.

Sakura went to the hospital for her shift. There she did her work, while watching and discussing how Tsunade worked the staff and talked about their medical research for the day. After her shift she went home and showered, she was already packed for her mission. She already told both Rin and Konan, that she would be gone for about a week, so she didn't have to worry about that. Instead she would have to know how to approach Sasori. She knew from what Chiyo said that he would gain the name Akatsuna no Sasori from this war and that he was lonely as a child, due to his parents early death, but she was not sure how to explain that once he defects from his village and joins a criminal organization, that has not been created yet, that he would still be loyal to his village in the long run.

She had to devise a plan on telling him what will happen, who his true allies were, and who to be wary of. But the problem is, she can't tell him too much without telling him that she is from the future and she can't do that because she doesn't want anymore people to know, plus she is not sure where his loyalties lie.

At this point Sakura was pacing around in the living room, with one hand crossed under her chest, the other propped against it, with her hand covering her chin. And this is how Minato found her when he walked in through the front door, her back was turned to him.

" Sakura," he called out causing said girl to pause mid-pace, muscles tense. " Is the mission your going on a _special_ mission?" she knew that he meant was it relating to something to do with the future.

She slowly turned around to face him." Yeah, I'm gonna be meeting a future frenemy, hopefully." she said the last part lowly, however Minato heard her loud and clear.

" Your going to meet up with another future Akatsuki member aren't you?"

" Ah, I need to know if he will be an ally or enemy." At Minato's frown she continued." But don't worry. I faced him when I was still a naive chunin and that was many years later, when he was even stronger than he is now." she tried to console him.

Minato walked up to her and cupped her face." Be careful. Anywhere outside of fire country is enemy territory, so you must stay on your guard at all times. Am I clear?" he questioned looking her dead in the eyes.

Sakura smiled up at him. It was always cute hearing powerful men tell her that they were worried about her, in their own prideful male way. She put one of her hands over his." I should be telling you that. At least I know who my opponent is and his fighting style. You on the other hand are just hoping that you can make it back with your team."

"Do you doubt my skills?"

" No, quite the opposite actually. However with great skills comes trouble, like a double-edged sword. Many will jump at the chance to fight and try to defeat Konoha's Yellow Flash."

Minato chuckled." Try is the key word, but don't worry I will make sure I come home alive and in one piece."

" You better, or else I will bring you back from the dead and kill you myself. Do you understand?"

" Yes ma'am!" answered Minato with a mocking salute.

Sakura let go of Minato's hand and huffed" Good. Now go shower, by the time you get back down dinner should be ready. I already started a little bit ago."

" Hai." Minato said as he pecked her cheek and left to walked back into the kitchen. Her body was on autopilot, while she was lost in thought.

This is the first time she would be leaving the village since she came back and she was wondering exactly what changed from the future. She already noticed that Konoha was a bit bigger, with a huge sakura trre, which must have been from before the kyuubi attack. So maybe Suna was different from before Gaara's father sealed Shukaku within him. But what she was really concerned for was Minato's safety. Although she knew that practically all this has happened before and that he survived every mission the Hokage gave him, she was still worried. Things were already different from the past she heard. Like Minato's and Kushina's relationship, though Sakura could never find it in herself to be upset that they weren't together, she knew that it was wrong, but she also knew that she didn't want Minato to be with anyone other than herself. She felt selfish for it, but with Kurama telling her that Naruto can still be born, she figure it was alright. Besides it was not like Kushina was in love with Minato any more, in fact she had herself a great guy, that she was head over heels in love with, or so Kushina says. She would never say this out loud , but Minato was a big part of her life and a huge part of her heart, larger than Sasuke had ever been. She did not want to lose him, be it death or to another woman, however in the end she knew it was his choice to make and she could do nothing about it.

**' Kit, let me explain something to you.'** began Kurama.

_' Heh. You've only spoken when I have been doing sealing research, is there something the matter?'_

**' With me no. With you yes. You keep thinking about Minato, Naruto, Konoha, everyone else and what they want or need. But you never stop and think about what you want and need, apart from two minutes ago and even then you call yourself selfish for it.'**

_' But I am! Minato should have been Kushina's. I was just supposed to make sure they didn't die this time around and save other people's lives that should not have died in the first place. But I took one look at Minato and threw plan A out the window as if it were on fire.'_

**' Kit, as you said before Kushina was already in love with with someone else. A relationship between those two again was highly unlikely and the minute you walked into their lives it disappeared all together. Plus you are still saving theirs and many others lives, so it's not the end of the** **world.'**

_' But...'_

**' Look. You are saving pretty much the whole world right now, by preventing one of the major down falls of the nation. The least you could get back is love. You never got to experience it the first time around, so why not give it a go now?'**

_' Love is such a strong word for this situation, Kurama.'_

**' Are you saying it's the wrong one though? Stop and think about how you really feel about Minato and how you have felt about other people. Think about what makes Minato different and why you worry so much about him going on a simple mission, when other loved ones have do so as well.'**

_' Well... It's because Minato is different. He does not ask things of me that make me mad or uncomfortable, unless he is messing with me. He does not judge others before he gets to know them. He's really kind to me, like when I work late in the hospital, he will come get me and walk me home, then tuck me in at night. He accepts my temper with open arms, when most people try to avoid me when I am in one of my moods...He understands me more than I understand myself sometimes and... I really don't want to lose him.'_

**' Because...'**

_' Because, I might be... in love with him.'_she finished softly in her head. The thought of loving someone again, made her think about her past, her team, and her weakness. She thought she loved Sasuke, convinced herself even, but really it was just a strong connection that she didn't want to lose. Her first 'love' experience had been equivalent to a slap in the face many times, but that was not even real love. She could not, did not, want to imagine what it would be like when she really fell in love with Minato and he did not return her feels.

**'Are you really going to give up on him because your scared to get hurt? Listen, when I was in Kushina's body I had access to her thoughts and some memories, when she let her control slip. In there I discovered that she used to be mean and insult him all the time for being feminine looking, however after he rescued her, she began to see the real him and fall in love with his personality and after a while confessed her feelings for him and was able to get together.'**

_' How is hearing about the guy I might love, past love life suppose to make me feel better?'_

**' Look kit, I'm saying that your situation is not all that bad. Kushina confessed even after all the hurtful things she did and they got together. While you two have had more than a good relationship since day one, so why can't you just come to terms with your feelings and confess.'**

_*sigh*' When the hell did the nine-tails fox demon inside me become my love_ _psychiatrist?'_

**' When you became love-sick. Now hurry up and come to terms with your feels, I'm sick of hearing your self berating over it.'**

_' Ahh. There's the fuzz ball I know and love.' _

**'Brat.'**

_' Geezer.'_

And with that Kurama disappeared back into the recesses of Sakura's mind, while Sakura went back to cooking, feeling a bit better after talking to her favorite little tenant.

* * *

Minato had just finished showering and was reaching for a towel, when he paused. The towel he was about to grab was Sakura's. It had a manilla background with large strawberries scattered around it. He smile a bit, it was so cute and so Sakura.

Then another thought crossed his mind as he began to dry off and get dressed. How did he feel about Sakura? She has been around so much for the past few months, that he can barely remember the time without her. She has molded into team seven as if she had been there all along, with helping Rin in her medical studies, poking fun at Kakashi to get him to lighten up, and calming down the forever energized and loud Obito. She fit into the team like family and he loved it. He would give his team the ninja rules, she would give them the life lessons, and they both would work together to make sure the team was able to not only understand them, but also apply them when needed.

Minato also enjoyed waking up to the smell of breakfast in the morning or cooking it for someone else. He enjoyed making her happy and felt a bit prideful whenever she would compliment his cooking. Knowing that there is someone so close that he can depend on and watch over not only makes him feel needed and wanted, but also kinda...complete. Not to mention that Sakura's personality is so different, one minute she is calm and collected, the next loud and chaotic. She is caring and gentle to the team and himself, then harsh and scolding them for causing trouble.

Minato never did imagine that he would have someone so close to him after Kushina. He was over her, but he did not want to get too close to someone again and have it not work out in the end. But with Sakura, all of his barriers came down, his playful side came out, and his heart was getting closer and closer to his sleeve. She is just so open about her emotions, even if reluctantly sometimes, that he can't help but be open as well. She can scowl scarier than a demon or smile sweeter than an angel and that is what keeps him coming back to her.

He realizes now that he does not want to lose her. Be it mission or man, she is someone he wants to keep as close as possible and away from the pain and danger that the world is made up of. She has been through so much and is willing to go through even more for her friends, family, and nation. He has never met someone so strong-willed, no matter what she says. Minato is sure he loves Sakura, but he still needs a little more time to understand if he is in love with her.

* * *

" Oh, good your right on time Minato." Sakura chirped happily as Minato came into the dinning room.

" Am I now? And here I was hoping to be fashionably late." her said dramatically, while putting the back of his right hand on his forehead.

" Zip it Goldy locks, or else I will start questioning your sexuality." Sakura threatened as she finished placing the food on the table.

" If you do, I will just have to show you what my sexual preference is." his said, letting his eyes slowly roam over her form with meaning.

Sakura blushed a bit, then glared." Shut up and sit down, you pervert."

Minato chuckled, but complied and they began eating. They were having Teariyaki, miso soup, steamed vegetables, and white rice.

" So Buttercup, have you decided on how your going to convince a future S-class criminal to join our side?"

" No, that's what I was trying to sort out, while cooking."_' Among other things.'_ she thought to herself.

" Well, why don't you explain to him who the real enemy is and try to convince him, that it is in his best interest to be on our side?"

" Eh?"

" Explain to him that there is a man out for power, willing to sacrifice enemy or ally to get it. Tell him that he does not have to be tied to his village if he truly wishes to leave it, but that he will be on our side when the time comes, otherwise he will end up dead and thrown away like a used puppet."

Sakura's lips twitched at the puppet part." That's not a bad idea." she said thoughtful.

" You don't think I'm capable of coming up with good ideas?" he asked with a fake hurt expression.

" Well you are blond." she answered, giving him a coy smile.

Minato huffed." Rude."

" Good."

They continued their meal in peace with light conversation about team seven, training, and many other things, till dinner was over and Sakura finished cleaning the dishes. They both said goodnight and went to bed.

_Sakura's Dream~_

_" NARUTO, SASUKE STOP! YOU DON'T HAVE TO FIGHT EACH OTHER, PLEASE!" shouted a distressed Sakura as she watched her two teammates battle._

_"Hn. Still annoying as always, Sakura. I have to kill Naruto, so that my reign as the Hokage will come. Then I will kill Madara."_

_" You can't just kill Madara on your own! And Naruto is the one meant to become Hokage, so stop this nonsense!" she yelled back, getting upset.  
_

_But they ignored her and charged each other, kunai vs. katana. The fight continued on and Sakura knew that there was nothing she could do. This was just like that time on the roof except Kakashi-sensei was not here and they will not stop till someone is dead._

_They began their final attack, charging up the chidori and rasengan. Once finished they ran at each other. Sakura screamed for them to stop and wanted to run in between them, but for some reason her legs would not move, her voice could not reach them, and she watched helplessly as they impaled each other through the chest. Sakura fell to her knees with tears streaming down her face._

_" Naruto...Sasuke...why?"_

_They both slowly turned their heads to her. The greenness of the forest disappeared and their surroundings became nothing but a black void._

_" Because Sakura-chan..." spoke Naruto for the first time._

_" You were to weak to save us." completed Sasuke._

_" You should have stopped us Sakura-chan, but you just stood there."_

_" No..." whispered out Sakura,tears still flowing._

_" You should have been strong enough to stop me before I left the village to join Orochimaru, but you just cried and cried, like the useless little girl you are."_

_" No..." _

_" You could not stop Sasuke from leaving or us from killing each other, because of your weakness." _

_" Don't you see Sakura..." started Sasuke._

_" In the end everything..." continued Naruto._

_**"Was your fault."** they finished together. _

_" No." she called out._

_" It's all your fault Sakura-chan."_

_" Your so weak and useless."_

_" NO! It's not might fault! It's not!"_

_" You could not save us Sakura-chan."_

_" You could not save the other members of Konoha 12."_

_" You could not save Kakashi-sensei."_

_" All because your weak."_

_" No. It's not my fault I... No! NO!"_

_End of Sakura's Dream._

"NOOOOOO~" screamed out Sakura as she quickly sat up and clutched her head still screaming no.

" Sakura!" yelled Minato as he burst into her room with one of his special kunai in his hand.

Sakura stopped screaming and looked up at him with tears streaming down her face.

" Minato..." her choked voice came out broken.

" Sakura," he called softly." what's wrong?" he asked as he came to kneel by the girl's bed.

" I- I had a nightmare... about my teammates death. They were telling me it was all my fault for being too weak and useless and -" by now she could not keep her voice stead enough to speak and continued to silently cry.

Minato wrapped his arms around her and began rubbing soothing circles on her back to comfort her.

" Shh, it's okay Sakura. It is not your fault, you did not force them to fight each other."

" But, if I had stopped Sasuke before -"

" Look at me Sakura." he commanded sternly. She complied." You can not control other people. You did your best at the time and in the end it was his choice to leave. However that is all in the past for you. Situations like that are why you are here now to prevent them, so calm down and know your not alone."

" But, what if I mess the future up to where it is worse than it already is?"

" well since I will be with you, we can both share the blame. The point is, people are here for you and care for you. There is no need to worry as long as you don't lose yourself and stray from your path, okay?"

She looked up into his soothing deep blue eyes, that were so sincere she could almost melt." Alright."

" Good." he made a move to stand, however Sakura grabbed his wrist. He was after all only wearing blue platted pajama bottoms, while she a large red shirt and tiny white shorts.

" C-can I sleep with you tonight?" she asked. Looking like an embarrassed child, admitting they were afraid of the dark.

Minato chuckled to himself and smiled." Sure." he replied as he grabbed her hand and lead her to his room.

He closed the door and she went over to his bed and got under the covers. Minato came over shortly and did the same, however he put his arms around her waist in a comforting manner. Sakura responded by snuggling closer to his chest and breathed in his scent. Minato started to rub circles into her back again which lulled her back to sleep. He looked down at the sleeping kunoichi in his arms and smiled.

Maybe, just maybe he already fell for her a long time ago.

* * *

**Sorry I took so long to update. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

**Plz review! I enjoy hearing what you thought of the chapters. Unless you hated it...that just makes me feel upset XP.**

**Buh - Bye~**


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